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

There is no need for me to call the Competition Authority, although we have spoken to it, because it contacted us about the beef forum to understand what is going on. It is very plugged in and engaged on beef issues and has examined the beef market. I could quote statistics on beef prices all day in terms of average EU prices, EU 15 prices, the comparison between Ireland and Britain and so on, but the Competition Authority is an independent statutory body, as it should be. If there is evidence that inappropriate behaviour is occurring in the beef sector, I am confident it will intervene, but it has not done so.

My job is to try to ensure a beef forum works in all of the areas where I should be influencing and developing policy, and that is what we are attempting to do today. We will get a lot done today at the beef forum on a series of areas such as weights, age, base price, increased transparency in receipt dockets and other areas about which farmers have expressed concern to me over the past 12 months. That is what it should be doing.

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