Tom Barry (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I have a question about the laying of poison in ditches adjoining and close to farmyards which is a common practice. The population of rats in maize fields can be overwhelming. Farmers often put poison into the rat holes in the fields. Houses and farms are adjacent to maize fields. There is a regulation to give seven days' notice of poison laying but a farmer might need to give notice every week. Could a more practical period of notice time be devised? I suggest perhaps once a year. A farmer might forget to give notice if it is to be given every week. It would be preferable not to fall foul of the law.