Tim Lombard (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Chair. It is wonderful to have the opportunity to have three minutes to speak in the Chamber.

I want to raise the issue of the knackeries and where matters stand at the moment. We have a significant issue in Ireland whereby there is a dispute between the people who collect fallen animals and the people who render the animals. All knackeries in Ireland are effectively closed. We have a build-up of fallen animals in rural Ireland. I spoke to individuals in west Cork earlier about the fact that more than 35 calls were made to one knackery. The owner does not have the ability to go out and pick these animals up because he has no place to take them. Mental health is a significant issue with Irish farmers. People do not want to be around farms where there are dead animals, but farmers cannot now move the carcasses of these animals. The people who pick up the dead animals are effectively out of business at present. They cannot move, knackeries are full and there is no place to render the carcasses because these people have left the trade. The dispute with the rendering plants needs to be dealt with. I cannot for the life of me understand how it has come to this. We knew that this issue was building in the past few months, but it has now hit a real crisis point.

I am not calling for a debate on the matter. The time for debate is over. There needs to be a meeting between the Minister, the knackeries and the rendering plants about how we can move forward. We need to have a solution very quickly, otherwise this unfortunate issue will just continue. Through the good offices of the Chair and the Leader, a note needs to be sent to the Minister about arranging the meeting I am calling for. Dialogue needs to happen, otherwise we will literally have dead animals lying around Ireland. Unfortunately, winter is coming. This means that there is potential for more animals to die. This is scandalous. I just cannot understand where matters stand.

I beg the indulgence of the House because I want to raise a second issue.