Results 5,281-5,300 of 10,862 for speaker:Matt Carthy

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: Mr. McHugh referred to the Common Agricultural Policy.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: What is the relationship between the Common Agricultural Policy and the UTP legislation?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: That would not be my reading. I know the answer to this but does the CCPC see the need to establish a new UTP enforcement authority as a signal by the Government that the CCPC failed to protect the market chain in relation to food?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: Does Mr. McHugh see any potential for the new body to encroach on the work that the CCPC is currently responsible for?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: UTPs are practices carried out by retailers or processors that discriminate against their suppliers in terms of the price they receive or the conditions attached. Is Mr. McHugh saying that up until this point, those practices never came within the remit of the CCPC?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: I ask that we keep answers as brief as possible. The Chair often criticises me for speaking for too long but it is usually the answers that are very long.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: I knew that would excite the Chair. I ask this because we have to attend a vote. Are there any current functions of the CCPC that could be transferred to the new body at some point?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: I will conclude on this, although I have a number of other questions so we will see if we have time.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: Will the Chair allow me back in to contribute when we return?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: We were talking about the distinctions between the new office for transparency and fairness and the CCPC. The witnesses will know that one of the criticisms of this committee, and we have spoken about it previously, relates to allegations of either price fixing or cartel-like behaviour. Essentially, the position of the CCPC is that it does not have the evidence to follow that through....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: What did the CCPC find?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: Regarding the CCPC's engagement, Mr. McHugh spoke about multiple parties. How many meat processors did the CCPC engage with at that time?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: How many did the CCPC sit down with as part of that investigation?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: It relates to this legislation and how it pertains to the work the CCPC is currently doing. I am coming to the substantive point.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: However, as part of this investigation.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: To summarise, essentially what happened is the CCPC received numerous complaints, mostly from individuals, expressing the belief that factories were operating in a collaborative manner outside the law. As they could not provide the CCPC with evidence of that collaboration, the CCPC was not in a position to pursue it. However, it did not even go to the factories and ask why their prices were...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: Mr. McHugh is, and he is not answering the question I am asking. To be clear, as part of the investigation into the allegations that factories are operating in a collaborative manner, and some would argue a cartel-like manner, the CCPC did not actually engage with the factories or their representative organisation.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: For any investigative body, it would not be unusual for it to go and ask a person regarding whom allegations had been made to answer to those allegations, but the CCPC did not.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: However, Mr. McHugh said the CCPC did start an investigation and had a year-long investigation.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill 2022: Discussion (6 Jul 2022)

Matt Carthy: I am coming to the point. Head 38 of the new Bill on the UTP enforcement body in Part 1 says the office may initiate and conduct investigations on its own initiative or on the basis of a complaint. That is very similar to the remit the CCPC has. Is that right? There is very similar language used.