Results 9,941-9,960 of 10,936 for speaker:Matt Carthy

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (4 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: Would we be obliged to do so if we followed the Comptroller and Auditor General's proposal?

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (4 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: This item arises from previous correspondence the committee received with respect to the Department's accounts. The Department spent something in the region of €33,000 on media monitoring services. I had submitted parliamentary questions on this matter to other Departments, as had Deputy Catherine Murphy. Several Departments employ external media monitoring services. Can the...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (4 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: I am just seeking an analysis in the first instance. It may then be something into which we could look further because it appears that a lot of money is being spent in this regard.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (4 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: If I recall the correspondence we sent to the Department correctly, we asked why there was such a small number recruited to Irish language posts. In the response we received, it was clarified that the situation was even worse than had been suggested in the original correspondence. I propose that we bring this matter to the attention of the Joint Committee on the Irish Language, Gaeltacht...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (4 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: It is interesting to see what is defined as a disability in the correspondence.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (4 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: No, not on that issue. I want come in on No. 175.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (4 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: On that, I just had a quick glance over this. Essentially, this is in regard to procurement. We had asked for a briefing and they sent us a comprehensive response - comprehensive in that it is lengthy. However, it essentially just repeats the information, and its core aspect is that it repeats the lack of appropriate ICT capacity and integration, saying again that this is the key...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (4 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: This was in response to that, I understand. Their answer is just to say they know what the problem is.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (4 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: I agree with everything Deputy Murphy has said. I find the answer concerning. It talks again about the difficulties with ICT and states that while the university is engaging with the vendors to develop a solution for this, it is not clear that a viable software solution will be found. This is a university saying it cannot find a software system that allows people to get paid for their...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (4 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: It is just to seek an update in January or February of next year.

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Beef Industry (3 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: 26. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his views on the four movement and 30 month rules imposed by meat factories; and the steps he is taking to ensure that such rules do not negatively impact on competition and farmers' ability to receive a fair price for their produce. [33511/20]

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Beef Industry (3 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: A number of rules are imposed by factories on farmers. Many of them date back to the period of the BSE crisis. The most renowned of them are the 30 month and four movement rules. They cause huge consternation for the farming community. They are seen as a way the factories manipulate prices and the market. Does the Minister have a view on these rules? Will he engage to ensure such rules...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: EU Regulations (3 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: I welcome that clarification on the legal obligation. The question remains: is there then recourse for the State to recoup the money that was spent on a product that was subsequently found to be deficient? The Minister told the Dáil he was informed of this issue on, I think, Thursday, 22 October. We know that the recall happened on 20 October, the previous Tuesday. We know that...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Livestock Issues (3 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: 24. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the steps he is taking to ensure that marts can operate functionally during Covid-19 restrictions in view of the fact that these are the only aspect of essential food production severely curtailed under level 5 restrictions. [33510/20]

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Livestock Issues (3 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: The only aspect of food production that has been severely curtailed during the level 5 restrictions is the operation of marts. I have never seen an issue cause so much antagonism, anxiety and frustration among the farming community and the marts. The current system is not working. I am sure the Minister has heard the stories from several marts around the State. This needs to be addressed....

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Livestock Issues (3 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: It is not good enough. Deputy McConalogue is the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine. He needs to stand up for our farming communities. Let us take some things as given. Marts are doing everything in their power to ensure that the online facilities are up to standard. They are the people telling us they are not working effectively. The people calling me - they must be calling...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Livestock Issues (3 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: There is a touch of naivety in the Minister's response. In my county, County Monaghan, for example, 48% of households do not have access to adequate broadband. That is the Government's own figure. I would imagine, and I think everyone would accept, that if we were to take the farming community alone, that figure would be much higher. Where does the Minister think these farmers are buying,...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: EU Regulations (3 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: 23. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to outline the process carried out to grant approval for a product (details supplied); if the product was physically tested; and the cause for delay in recalling the product. [33509/20]

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: EU Regulations (3 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: I wish the Minister good morning. I hope no one planning to tune in tonight is accidentally watching the US presidential results instead. I thank the Minister for being here so late. My first question relates to the ViroPro product. Was the product physically tested by the Department in advance of it being approved? What was the cause of delay in recalling the product? Will the...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: EU Regulations (3 Nov 2020)

Matt Carthy: The question I asked was whether the product had been tested before it was approved by the Department. That is a crucial issue. We know, for example, that the HSE purchased 3 million units of this product, some 1 million of which were being sent to healthcare centres, including nursing homes and perhaps even hospitals. That is above and beyond the issue pertaining to schools. What is...