Kerry Senator Paul Coghlan has called for action on the problem of seagulls in Dublin city centre, who he said ” wreak havoc with their breaks” ripping rubbish bags, writes Jack Power of the Irish Examiner.
Mr Coghlan, the leas-chathaoirleach of the Seanad yesterday told the house of an incident on Dawson street he witnessed leaving Leinster House on Monday night.
Mr Coghlan’s statements followed a debate on the rise of obesity in Ireland and the overuse of antibiotics among Senators, he said that what he witnessed “must be mentioned”.
The Senator continued to tell the Upper House how he came across a number of seagulls tearing at plastic bin bags left out on the street for collection by city centre businesses. “They are perched on ledges ready to swoop … and seem to have a voracious appetite” said Mr Coghlan.
Mr Coghlan placed the time of the incident at 11 pm, “they do not seem to understand bed time” he said. Mr Coghlan did confirm he was not seeking to propose legislation to deal with the practice of seagulls pecking at rubbish bags.
But Mr Coghlan did say he wanted to bring attention of the issue to “business owners who are putting out bundles of plastic bags. The birds are destroying the bags with their beaks. Litter is being strewn all over the place.”
Offering potential solutions to the capital city’s seagull scourge Mr Coghlan said, “perhaps a repulsive spray can be found if business owners are to continue putting out plastic bags or maybe they should be encouraged to use wheelie bins, as plastic bags are leaving litter all over the place.”
Senator David Norris followed Mr Coghlan’s statements on seagulls to bring attention to the lack of media attention given to Seanad Eireann in recent weeks. He said he was disappointed, and that “it is a serious matter when the Seanad is not recorded at all”.
In the absence of any pending legislation for the Seanad to debate, Mr Norris said that the practice of hearing isolated statements from Senators had given rise to a climate that had a “lack of intellectual activity” within the house.
