Results 9,441-9,460 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Other Questions: Aquaculture Licences (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: We are talking about something that has not happened and I presume the answer to the question lies in the contractual relationship involving an owner or a company that leases infrastructure. This is a question I cannot answer without looking at the leasing contractual relationship. I am not even sure why it is relevant to an application at this stage. We are only looking at whether it is...

Other Questions: Aquaculture Licences (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: The Deputy is trying to drag me into a detailed debate on issues to which I will have to give consideration in regard to a licence application which is active. I will not get dragged into that debate.

Other Questions: Aquaculture Licences (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I heard the Deputy's question.

Other Questions: Aquaculture Licences (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: The Deputy does not have to repeat the question.

Other Questions: Aquaculture Licences (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: No.

Other Questions: Aquaculture Licences (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: There is no moratorium in palce.

Other Questions: Geological Surveys (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: This query about a geological survey has been asked in the House on a number of occasions. The background is that Coillte Teoranta was established as a private commercial company under the Forestry Act 1988 and day-to-day operational matters such as the conduct of surveys are the responsibility of the company. My Department has contacted Coillte which has advised that it has not conducted a...

Other Questions: Geological Surveys (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I assure the Deputy that I do take interest in the detail of what is occurring in Coillte. If we find valuable natural resources underground, we must obviously examine how best we can use them. I hope the Deputy and others will support us in this regard. Unfortunately, this has not been the case in that the Deputy opposed vehemently the bringing ashore of natural resources just off the...

Other Questions: Geological Surveys (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: On Deputy Boyd Barrett's point, I was not referring to fracking. Much consideration is required before making a decision on fracking. On Coillte, we are not proposing to sell anything except harvesting rights, which essentially means timber. There is a valuation of Coillte's commercial forests in terms of the standing timber and its future value. The valuation is the combination of a...

Other Questions: Coillte Lands (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: Coillte appears to be the flavour of the day. On the Deputy's question of whether Coillte will continue to manage all of the State's 11 forest parks and 150 recreational sites, the short answer is "Yes." I cannot make a long-term prediction in terms of the business model under which Coillte operates, but there is no intention on the part of the Government or my Department to move...

Other Questions: Coillte Lands (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I have consistently said throughout the debate on the harvesting rights issue that we want to do two things. First, we need to protect the asset, in terms of woodland, parkland, public access, trails, cycle ways and other amenities, that is the national forest estate that is of real public interest. Second, we need to ensure the industry that has been built up in accessing timber from...

Other Questions: Coillte Lands (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I will deal with Deputy Luke 'Ming' Flanagan's questions first. It is not appropriate to answer the question he posed until we make a decision on the sale. It is important to say that Coillte, like every semi-State company in Ireland, is going through a reform process to reduce its cost base which it needs to go through; it has been doing that to become more commercially viable, and that...

Other Questions: Coillte Lands (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: -----and such management will need to be funded by any potential new owner. Forests have been sold previously; this is not rocket science. They will need to be managed, harvested in time and in the meantime the thinings need to be managed. That will involve a service contract that will be in place if there is a new owner, which obviously Coillte is likely to be involved in. Let us deal...

Other Questions: Coillte Lands (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: -----or he takes me, to try to forget about the madness of my job sometimes. I am more than aware of the value to the communities of these extraordinary natural resources and we are not going to compromise those.

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Rural Development Programme (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: Under the Rural Development Programme 2007 - 2013 [RDP] close on €4.8Bn, including national exchequer top up of €516 million, is allocated at programme level. This amount includes an allocation of EAFRD funding of €2.94Bn. Since the launch of the RDP expenditure under the programme up to the end 2012 amounted to €3.74bn. This represents close on 77.6% of the total...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Food Labelling (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I assume that the Deputy is referring to food processors and traders in this question. The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) under the aegis the Minister for Health has overall responsibility for the enforcement of food safety in Ireland. It carries out this remit through service contracts with my Department and other agencies including the Health Service Executive (HSE), Local...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Common Agricultural Policy Negotiations (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 112, 118 and 121 together. The negotiations on the reform of the CAP have made considerable progress across a number of fronts in recent weeks. Following the agreement by the European Council on the Multiannual Financial Framework in early February, the European Parliament two weeks ago agreed its position on the CAP reform package. This was followed last...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: District Veterinary Offices (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: Following on from the successful restructuring of my Department’s local office network, which reduced the number of local offices from 58 to 16, my Department has reviewed the business processes and procedures and, in particular, the administrative support requirements, in its 16 Regional Offices. Arising from this review, the Department has recently introduced a number of significant...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Single Payment Scheme Expenditure (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: In line with its budgetary proposal to limit the level of direct income support that large agricultural holdings could receive, the Commission’s original CAP reform proposals contained a mandatory cap of €300,000 on the amount of direct payments that could be paid to an individual farmer, together with provision for further cuts in payments between €150,000 and...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Food Labelling (26 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: The Minister for Health has overall responsibility for the general food labelling legislation and the new EU food information regulations that were adopted by the Council of Health Minister in December 2011. However, my Department plays an important role in the enforcement of this legislation under service contract to the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI). In my capacity as Chairman...