Richard O'Donoghue (Limerick County, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I understand, but it is a process and I am disgusted with the way farmers were treated. I am also disgusted with the way a lot of the employees in the meat sector are being treated. It is the job of the witnesses to know about the agencies and how many of the workers are on contracts. It is their job to know whether they have a safe place to live and if they are coming back into a safe environment with the proper PPE in place. We also got reports that some factories told some workers that it was their responsibility to provide their own PPE. There are a lot of questions to be answered. I have listened to everyone who has spoken today. The witnesses from MII have gone around in circles. They have not answered one question properly. They just kicked it down the road. They need to find out the facts about how the meat industry is run, where the employees are coming from, how many are with agencies, and how many are living in a safe environment in order that they can work in a safe workplace. I want the witnesses to contact me and other members with the proper statistics relating to the meat industry and in response to the questions I have asked. I want the information in writing. The witnesses can respond to me now but I want a formal response in writing with a breakdown of the 1,100 cases and I want to know how many workers are still employed by agencies.