Results 4,841-4,860 of 16,057 for speaker:Mary Coughlan
- Food Safety Standards. (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: I read with interest the debate that took place between all the members of the committee with DG SANCO, and Commissioner Kyprianou has put in place a number of initiatives that will be evaluated in January. I took the opportunity to express concerns with Commissioner Kyprianou, both in speaking with him at Council and in forwarding to him all sorts of documentation and press articles, to...
- Food Safety Standards. (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: It is on that basis that I will continue to express concerns. Deputy Upton probably read a retort by the Brazilian authorities to something I said during the summer on this issue. Equivalence and equity are the two English words which one is citing. Assurances are given by the competent authority, be it the Commission or the FVO, on the safety of meat. I will continue to raise this issue,...
- Energy Policy. (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: We do not have time to go to Australia. We will be busy for a while.
- Milk Quota. (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: As the Deputy will be aware, the current milk quota arrangements were extended until the end of the 2014-15 milk quota year as part of the 2003 Luxembourg agreement on the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy. A review will take place in 2008 and any proposals submitted by the European Commission will be considered by the Council of Ministers at that time. Should the Commission come...
- Milk Quota. (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: The future for young farmers will be on this side of the House because the negativity expressed by the Opposition in farming circles has been such that it would depress anybody. Given the priority afforded to the milk industry in this country from a production and manufacturing perspective, I decided, against the background of the world trade talks and the fact Chile is now our competitor,...
- Milk Quota. (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: The Deputy can take it any way he wants but I did not suggest milk would be â¬4 or â¬5 a gallon. What I thought appropriate in the context of the exchange was that, first, the fundamentals of ring-fencing would not move, a policy with which the Deputy will agree, given the importance of the dairy sector in the Cavan-Monaghan area, as well as my area. Second, one of the frustrations...
- Milk Quota. (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: I indicated that all of these decisions must be made against the background of what the Commissioner gave as her personal view when she came to Ireland three weeks ago, namely, that the future of quotas was perhaps untenable. Therefore, we, including farmers, must make decisions on the basis of that background â in other words, that we do not have, as the Deputy stated, quota rebels. This...
- Milk Quota. (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: Through the co-op.
- Milk Quota. (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: First, â¬25 million is a sizeable investment. Sometimes people are misquoted in the Irish Farmers' Journalââ
- Milk Quota. (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: ââand there will be a retort by one of my co-op representatives that this person was misrepresented.
- Milk Quota. (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: No, this person was misrepresented. Second, a number of those who are pontificating never put a red cent into the industry in the past 20 years. Third, my scheme is specific to Annex 1 and a small part of Annex 2. We are driving the policy initiative in providing the funding and Enterprise Ireland is delivering the project. In the case of Annex 2 products, Enterprise Ireland still has...
- Food Labelling. (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: The Deputy needs to go out to more restaurants.
- Afforestation Programme. (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: The Deputy could sow a few trees.
- Written Answers — Freedom of Information: Freedom of Information (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: The number of applications received under the Freedom of Information legislation is as follows: 2003 317 2004 278 2005 210 2006 (to 16/10/06) 172
- Written Answers — Genetically Modified Organisms: Genetically Modified Organisms (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: I wish to inform the Deputy that I have had no contacts with the EPA in respect of any GM event. With regard to the application from BASF to the EPA earlier this year to trial a GM blight free potato at a farm in Co Meath my Department responded to the consultation process undertaken by the EPA. I am pleased to note that many of the issues raised by my Department were taken on board in the...
- Written Answers — Land Purchase: Land Purchase (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: I am aware that the Irish Timber Council has expressed concerns in relation to the proposed purchase. My colleague, Mary Wallace TD, Minister of State at my Department with responsibility for forestry, met with representatives of the Council recently to discuss these concerns. My Department's position on this matter is that the plant in question is of strategic significance to the forestry...
- Written Answers — Milk Quota: Milk Quota (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: I recently announced the establishment of a new Milk Quota Trading System to supersede the current Milk Quota Restructuring Scheme. The new system was agreed following extensive consultation with the farm organisations and ICOS and will release larger quantities of quota to active and committed dairy farmers through the combined operation of a market Exchange and a maximum price Priority...
- Written Answers — National Herd: National Herd (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: The Irish beef industry is worth â¬1.3 billion in foreign earnings to the national economy annually. Ireland produces over 500,000 tonnes of beef a year and exports over 90% of our production. The sector is very important and its viability is dependent on the quality of production which in turn depends very much on the status of our suckler herd. I am keenly aware of the challenges facing...
- Written Answers — Rural Environment Protection Scheme: Rural Environment Protection Scheme (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: REPS 4 will form an integral part of Ireland's Rural Development Plan (RDP) 2007 â 2013. A draft of the RDP will issue for public consultation shortly and it is my objective to secure EU Commission approval for the RDP and to roll out REPS 4 at the earliest possible date in 2007.
- Written Answers — National Herd: National Herd (17 Oct 2006)
Mary Coughlan: There are a range of diseases which impact on animal health, animal welfare and productivity while a number of them have the potential to affect public health. Many of our competitors have programmes in place to reduce and eradicate some of these diseases and increasingly, authorities in some importing countries are demanding certification that products are derived from animals or herds that...