Results 20,301-20,320 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Milk Quota (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: -----because our systems picked it up and we responded to it very robustly. Anybody who has been involved with our special investigations unit, as it was at the time, knows that it is pretty robust in terms of how it gets to the bottom of things. It works with and takes advice from the Garda on a regular basis. People were interviewed under caution. We followed up on this as to the...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Milk Quota (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: I will be able to reply one more time.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Milk Quota (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: That is not true.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Milk Quota (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: To be clear on this, I can talk about the advice that I got within my own Department, which states that the facts are not so clear as to provide a sufficient degree of probability that a prosecution would succeed, given the legal standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt. It further states that it is also relevant that the quota system is now abolished and therefore there is no merit in...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Milk Quota (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: That was my Secretary General.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Milk Quota (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: That is on the basis of the legal recommendations that came to him and me, based on the report we received from the Office of the Chief State Solicitor.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Commonage Land (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: In relation to what is referred to as the Keelderry commonage, a number of commonages, including the Keelderry commonage, were selected for ground inspection in 2010 as part of a review of commonage parcels declared by applicants under the 2010 single payment scheme, SPS, and less favoured areas, LFA, schemes. A number of inspections of this parcel of land were carried out in 2010 and 2011...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Commonage Land (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: The Deputy should be careful about what he seeking here in terms of clear definitions of what is in and what is out in commonage areas along the west of Ireland. We are trying to get more farming activity into commonage areas. We are trying to be as flexible and generous as possible within the rules to try to include as much land as possible to support farmers in those areas. The Deputy...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Commonage Land (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: Do not exaggerate for effect. That does not happen.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Commonage Land (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: There are independent ecologists all over the country. We have inspectors and we have a job to do. Our inspectors are very experienced. They understand commonage and how it works and marginal land and how it works. In this case there was an inspection. There was another inspection to verify that, which happens all of the time. There was another inspection after that to verify the...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Grocery Industry Competition (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: The Deputy might remember it was his Government that got rid of below-cost selling.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Horse Racing Industry Funding (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: I thank Deputy Ferris for raising this issue. We had a brief discussion on it in the committee a number of days ago. Horse Racing Ireland is a commercial State body established under the Horse and Greyhound Racing Act 2001 and it is responsible for the overall administration, promotion and development of the horse racing industry. The current foal levy scheme, which was introduced in 2000...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Horse Racing Industry Funding (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: The Deputy's proposal is not unreasonable and it has been discussed. To be clear, small breeders in general operate at the lower end of the market in terms of the foal levy. In fact, last year, in the case of more than 30% of foals, or 2,346, the levy was paid at either €35 or €50, whereas 27% of the income for 2014 came from just 616 foals. The last time the levy was...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Horse Racing Industry Funding (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: Whether or not foal levies are applied in other countries is not really the point. One might well ask whether other countries give €60 million per year towards the horse and greyhound racing industries. Ireland has its own structure in terms of supporting the racing industry. Indeed, I am not sure any other country in the world prioritises horse racing as much as we do. There are...

Other Questions: Afforestation Programme (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: I am glad the Deputy and I are in agreement on the importance of forestry. Ireland is well below the European average in terms of forest cover and we are responding to that in several ways. We have a very active State-owned company, Coillte, that is looking to expand and invest in its forestry interests and to that end is taking a new approach to its work. We are one of the very few...

Other Questions: Afforestation Programme (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: I agree with all that. I reassure the Deputy that the Department has a forestry section based in Wexford. We prioritise forestry and the section is almost a stand-alone unit, promoting what it does. The Minister of State, Deputy Hayes, is in charge of it politically. It has done a very good job in ensuring it holds on to budgets. Agriculture has been progressing over the past five years...

Other Questions: Afforestation Programme (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: We are currently at less than €12 billion. We are looking at sustainable intensification of agriculture, but we are also looking at a very strong sustainability story in terms of how we use land, and forestry is a big part of that.

Other Questions: Afforestation Programme (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: The Minister of State, Deputy Hayes, has just told me that producer groups and co-operatives are being set up to try to create economies of scale for forestry. I will allow Coillte management to outline its new plans and business model as well as the public value delivery model that Coillte has in place and will have in place for the next five to ten years. Coillte needs to manage a...

Other Questions: Afforestation Programme (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: That is not an acceptable approach and Coillte is ensuring that will not be the case in future. I have had long discussions with Coillte representatives, as has the Minister of State, Deputy Hayes. They are under no illusions in terms of the broader public good value it has and the responsibilities it has towards recreation-----

Other Questions: Afforestation Programme (25 Nov 2015)

Simon Coveney: -----and managing-----