Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I ask committee members and witnesses to switch off their phones. I wish to inform members the Minister has another appointment and a vote is likely to be called on the Order of Business in the Dáil. I welcome the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Simon Coveney, and his officials to the meeting. Members are reminded of the long-standing parliamentary practice to the effect that they should not comment on, criticise or make charges against a person outside the Houses or an official either by name or in such a way as to make him or her identifiable.

The purpose of the meeting is to consider the proposal that section 17A of the Diseases of Animal Act 1966 shall continue in force for the period ending 8 March 2014.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I can spend as long discussing the issue as the Chairman wants. This is a formality which has happened every year since 2001. Legislation has applied since 2001 which allows me to authorise officers to conduct the relevant inspections required. The reason this needs to be renewed on a yearly basis is that it was supposed to be a temporary measure while new animal health and welfare legislation was being put in place. This has taken much longer than was previously anticipated. It is nearly concluded and once this legislation is finalised there will be no need for this annual approval process for me to delegate authorised officers. The problem is that if the committee were to choose to not allow me do it I could not authorise officers, which would cause an unwelcome lacuna and problems.

I ask people to allow me to continue with the current procedures for authorised officers until we have a new Animal Health and Welfare Bill that will apply new rules for those authorised officers. We all seemed quite comfortable with that when we debated the provision. I do not want to waste the committee's time beyond that unless members want me to go into more detail.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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Shall I take it, please God, that the Animal Health and Welfare Bill will have passed both Houses of the Oireachtas and been signed by the President by Easter?

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Yes, hopefully.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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Once that happens then the motion will be irrelevant and we shall have a new regime. On that basis I have no more to say.

Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Does Deputy Ferris wish to add a comment?

Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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I have no problem with that.

Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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With regard to the point made by Deputy Ó Cuív, does the motion become redundant?

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Yes. We have spent a lot of time working on the Animal Health and Welfare Bill. At present we are discussing the powers that authorised officers will have in terms of entering premises and so on. There will be a more detailed description of what authorised officers should and should not do than currently exists. In the meantime we need to allow authorised officers to get on with their job. I suspect and hope that the sooner that we get the Animal Health and Welfare Bill done the better and then the motion will become irrelevant.

Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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For the purpose of formality, is it agreed that the committee recommends that there shall be no further debate of the motion by Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann? Agreed.