Issue No.2, April 2024
A Message From the Chairman
We understand that the first edition of the IMFHA’s Newsletter was well
received and appreciated by those involved in the administration of the 42 hunt clubs that comprise the Association. As I said in the first edition, it is intended that a Newsletter will be an integral part of our communications strategy going forward. Bearing that in mind, it is important that you, the members, contact the IMFHA Office with news worth items so that the content is relevant, informative and so that information is shared. The success of the Newsletter greatly depends
upon its distribution through hunt secretaries and hunt clubs. Accordingly, I would be most grateful if hunt secretaries could ensure that the Newsletter is widely distribute copy amongst your hunt members, subscribers and supporters.
One of the questions frequently asked by hunting folk is “what does the IMFHA Committee do?” This is both an interesting and a pertinent question now that the hunt insurance issue has largely been dealt with and the NHSPFS board is in
place. The IMFHA representatives on the Board currently are Mrs Kate Jarvey (Duhallow) and Pat Dillon
(Meath Hunt).
Committee meetings of the IMFHA are usually held monthly during the season, but in more recent years
meetings have been held between eight and ten times a year. Of course, the frequency and duration of
committee meetings depends greatly upon the range of issues that may be on the agenda. As you might
expect, during the period when the hunt insurance cover was under negotiation, meetings were held more frequently. In addition, committee members are often called upon to attend meetings of FACE (Ireland) and Hunting Association of Ireland and, occasionally we may need to have meetings with our colleagues in the Irish Masters of Harriers Association and the Ward Union Hunt, to discuss matters of mutual interest.
The agendas for our meetings are determined by issues brought to our attention by members, member hunt clubs or through correspondence received through the IMFHA office. Correspondence (that is emails and letters received) are distributed to committee members in advance of a meeting so that they have the time to read and digest the content of the correspondence. As Chairman it is my job to maintain the order of our meetings and to ensure that everyone present feels free to offer their opinions and to contribute to the discussions. Matters are generally settled on consensus and, in my time at least, we have never had to have a vote at the committee.
This year so far we have held meetings in January, February and in April at Horse & Jockey. The principal
matters discussed at the January meeting were, the British media coverage regarding the Dungarvan
Foxhound’s fund-raiser for the RNLI; the on-going threat of a second bill being brought forward in the Northern Ireland Assembly to ban hunting mammals with dogs by John Blair MLA, Alliance Party and,
preparations and planning for the IMFHA Hound Show at Stradbally which is due to be held on Sunday 7th July, 2024. Incidentally, we had been in contact with the CEO of the RNLI after Christmas and I can
confirm that the RNLI does not have a policy to refuse charitable donations from hunt clubs in Ireland and
they will be happy to receive our donations in the future.
The February committee meeting was also take up with planning for the Hound Show in July, discussing
guidelines for Safeguarding and we received an update on the situation in Northern Ireland vis-à-vis the
proposed Blair Bill. We also had to deal with a small few complaints made by landowners against their
local hunt clubs and this is a matter that I would like to address.
Very infrequently the IMFHA office may receive a letter or email directly from a landowner. In 99.9% of
cases the issues raised are not awfully serious but rather inconvenient, but at the same time, you would
have to ask yourself why did the landowner find it necessary to write to the IMFHA office? This is a matter
of concern for the committee because these cases consume our time whereas they should of course be dealt with locally by the Master or Joint-Masters or hunt officials of the hunt club mentioned. When an incident or accident occurs, it is the responsibility of the Master or Joint-Masters, properly advised by their Area Managers and the hunt officers (chairman and hon. secretary) to meeting whomever feels that they have been discommoded and to resolve the matter locally and in a timely and appropriate manner. Members and Masters of a hunt club should know their areas, should know their farmers and should be able to diffuse local incidents without a disgruntled landowner having to contact the IMFHA office. If members think that there is a need for a set of instructive guidelines for dealing with complaints to be drafted and distributed, please contact our Hon. Secretary, Mrs Verity O’Mahony at the IMFHA office (irishmfha@gmail.com).
Following the untimely death of Capt Ian Farquhar (see below) who was due to judge at the Hound Show,
I can now confirm that Stephen Lambert and George Sanderson are availability to judge the bitches.
On the issue of safeguarding, Caitriona Conlon Dempsey MH and Michael Lennon MFH have been doing
some work on behalf of the Hunting Association of Ireland and they recently sent us a set of Guidelines
for Safeguarding based on information from Horse Sport Ireland (HSI). These Guidelines are to be
distributed amongst our registered packs. Responsibility for safeguarding resting with each individual
hunt club and, as you know, each hunt club is required to have appointed a Child Protection Officer who
should have completed the requisite training which is available through the HSI. It is important to note
that a hunt club does not provide a child-minding service and child under 18 years out on a hunting day
must have a parents or guardian present to look after them.
As I write the weather has improved considerably so I am sure that hunt horses are being turned out for
their summer holidays, cattle are being evicted from sheds, tankers are being cleared and the ploughmen
are busy. Whilst the summer provides a well-earned break for our hunt staff, Masters and hunt committee
members, there are still many important jobs to be done before next season far beyond the kennels. Hunt
coverts need to be visited, checked and fenced or cut. Bitches and puppies have to be looked after and
hounds sent on walk. Hunt functions and fund raisers need to be organised and attended and, in a few
months’ time, we will all eager await the Puppy Shows and delight in seeing the new entries.
To those who are changing their positions and those hunt staff that are taking up new positions, I wish them every success for the year ahead. To new Masters and those continuing in office I thank you for your
support and look forward to your attendance at the IMFHA’s AGM in October. To the hard-working hunt
chairpersons, hunt secretaries and hunt treasurers we send our thanks and appreciation for all the
administration work that they do. Without their loyalty and commitment many hunt clubs would simply
not survive. Finally, if these have been changes in the mastership, or hunt staff or officers of your hunt
club, please inform our Hon. Secretary, Mrs O’Mahony through the IMFHA office as soon as possible so
that we can update our records.
Enjoy the summer and I look forward to seeing you at the Hound Show at Stradbally.
Lord Waterford
To read the full Newsletter please click on the file below.