Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am sure we will correspond with the Department. We have a job in this committee and in every committee in these Houses. If these Houses are to have any respect whatever, when we publish reports and make recommendations we should regularly bring in departmental officials and the Minister and hold them to account. If they cannot implement recommendations, they should tell us on the record why that is so. We have a responsibility in that respect. I applaud the Chairman for fulfilling our responsibility but every committee in here needs to do it. This place is full of reports gathering dust on shelves. The work has been done but the recommendations have not been implemented. I hope we can start to break that practice in this committee.

The delegation has picked a number of key recommendations it wishes to see implemented. It was recommended that Bord Bia would be the preferred body. Is there any indication why that recommendation has not been engaged with, as it makes eminent sense? Farmers are protesting today about green, low-carbon, agri-environment scheme, GLAS, and agri-environment options scheme, AEOS, payments, which have been delayed since October. What is the Department's explanation for that? Why will it not front-load the payment, as recommended, and as my colleague noted, there would not be a huge cost? What explanation has been given by the Department and does the delegation believe it respects these recommendations? Is it doing its own thing?