Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 16:

In page 20, to delete lines 11 to 14 and substitute the following:“(3) The owner, occupier or person in charge of land on which a poison or a substance containing a poison is laid shall give—

(a) at least 7 days’ notice in writing in advance of the laying of the poison or substance, or

(b) if the poison or substance is being laid as part of a programme for the control of vermin in crops, at least 7 days’ notice in writing in advance of the commencement of the programme accompanied by details of when it is proposed to lay the poison or substance, to the local authority for the functional area in which the land is situated.”.

This amendment is intended to address an issue raised by Deputy Tom Barry about poison laid as part of a programme. The amendment provides that only a single notice need be lodged with the council or local authority. This can apply for up to a year. This was a sensible suggestion to reduce unnecessary bureaucracy and I am happy to accept it. Amendment No. 42 updates section 58, which contains a reference to an offence under section 18. Due to amendments to section 18, this should refer to section 18(5) and not section 18(7). Amendment No. 42 is essentially a consequence of amendment No. 16.

Essentially, this is about taking a pragmatic and sensible approach to poison so that farmers do not have to go through the process of applying for a permit to lay poison each time they wish do so. That would not have been practical in terms of implementation.

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