Horse traders vow to fight the planned move and have denied claims the fair leads to cruelty and is unregulated, writes Olivia Kelly
Horse traders say they will resist any attempt by Dublin City Council to discontinue the traditional Smithfield horse fair and are prepared to respond to any legal action aimed at relocating the fair to northwest Dublin.
The vice-president of the Smithfield Horse Fair Committee, Bernard Fagan, said he has had no communication from the council in relation to its proposal to move the market.
"They never informed us that they intended to move the fair, I'm the vice-president of the committee, and I can tell you that they haven't even bothered to approach us."
The council claims that it has tried to communicate with the traders but has had difficulty in finding any individual or group which will admit to having a part in the running of the fair.
"The horse fair is an essential part of Smithfield's history and should not be removed just because some people perceived it as being incompatible with newer developments in the area," Mr Fagan said.
"The horse fair has been there since at least the 1800s, and it's the one bit of culture and tradition left in this part of Dublin city. The people who have bought apartments here bought knowing that the first Sunday of every month there would be a market."
Mr Fagan rejects claims that the market is dangerous or disruptive.
"It lasts for a maximum of about six hours and it starts early and ends early. The ice rink that's there at the moment goes from 10am to 10pm, with loud music and a generator and is responsible for far more accidents."
Claims by the DSPCA that Smithfield is unsafe and unsuitable for horses and that the animals are vulnerable to mistreatment were "rubbish", Mr Fagan said.
"The DSPCA are ignorant of what goes on, there is no cruelty and I defy anyone to find ill-treatment of the horses. There are laws about buying and selling horses and it would only be a very small minority of people who don't obey those laws."
Mr Fagan added that the fair was a tourist attraction, brought money into the area and was loved by "99 and three quarters" of local residents.
However, local Labour councillor Emer Costello said many people feel trapped in the homes during the fair.
"There are obvious health and safety issues with the fair and a lot of residents and local business people would really like to see it moved."
DSPCA inspector Robert Kenny said the fair was completely unregulated, horses were kept in unsafe conditions and most of the purchasers of the animals were children.
"It's crazy, we've seen so many accidents, some very serious injuries, people badly kicked, and it's only a matter of time before someone is killed. We personally think the market should be closed, not relocated, closed."
Horses were left to roam around next to prams and small children or were improperly tied to barriers or the backs of jeeps, Mr Kenny said. "No one is running it, that's the problem. Children buy these horses for less than €250, they gallop up the slippery granite surface in front of the shop and hotel on Smithfield square." While the DSPCA wants the market closed, it would not necessarily favour its relocation to a private site, Mr Kenny said. "At the moment we enforce the protection of animals legislation in conjunction with the 12-13 gardaí who are on duty at the market and if we witness acts of cruelty, we can and do seize animals.
"However if this is held in a private venue the gardaí won't be involved and there's no way DSPCA inspectors are going to go out to a field in Finglas without the protection of the gardaí."