Results 22,961-22,980 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Sheep Census (19 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: An application under the 2014 Grassland Sheep Scheme was received from the person named on 7 April 2014. Payment has not issued to the person named as the holding concerned has not satisfied the Scheme minimum eligibility requirements namely, the submission of the annual sheep census form prior to the extended closing date of 14 February 2014. The Sheep Census form in respect of the person...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Bord na gCon Administration (19 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: Following the publication of the Indecon Report in July 2014, Bord na gCon submitted an action plan with timelines for implementing the 27 recommendations in the Indecon Report dealing with governance, finance, regulation and welfare. This action plan has been published on the Bord na gCon website. Bord na gCon has assured my Department that it has assiduously followed up on the undertakings...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse Sport Ireland (19 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: I understand from my trade missions to China that there are significant opportunities for the development of exports of sport horses to that country. Earlier this year, I launched the Strategic Plan for the sport horse sector that was drawn up by Horse Sport Ireland, Teagasc and the Royal Dublin Society. The Strategy Report highlights the need to improve the marketing and sales capacity...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Common Security and Defence Policy (19 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: At a joint meeting of Foreign and Interior Ministers, held in Luxembourg on the 20th April, the Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship Commissioner presented a 10 point plan of immediate action to be taken in response to the crisis situation in the Mediterranean. The key focus of the plan is on preventing loss of life. The 10-point action plan was considered by the Heads of States and...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Air Corps (19 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: The White Paper on Defence (2000) sets out the current defence policy framework. The role of the Air Corps as set out in the White Paper is to provide a range of military and non-military services in support of the State. These supports include maintenance of a general helicopter capability for a variety of tasks, including support to An Garda Síochána, as well as provision of a...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Army Barracks Closures (19 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: I am aware that there have been recent rumours that there are plans to close Custume Barracks. These rumours cause unnecessary worry to military personnel and their families and are totally unfounded. I would like to reassure all concerned that there are no plans to close any barracks. Custume Barracks, Athlone is and will continue to be an important operational military barracks. There...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Army Barracks Closures (19 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: In July 1998, the Government approved a programme of evacuation and sale of six army barracks considered surplus to military requirements. Magee Barracks was one of the barracks identified for closure and disposal. On 1st July 2003 the Government decided the former Magee Barracks in Kildare Town would be among the State lands released to Kildare County Council for inclusion in the Sustaining...

Other Questions: Bovine Disease Controls (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: It is not slaughter.

Other Questions: Bovine Disease Controls (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: It is also inhumane that we have to slaughter cattle because they have TB when we know that we can get the incidence of TB down. That is no more humane than the badger cull. What is humane for me is to get TB out of the herd, which is what we are trying to do, and out of the badger population too. In that way, we will not have to target cattle and badgers. We have other questions with...

Other Questions: Agriculture Schemes Payments (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: The Deputy will see from those figures that the vast majority of cases have actually been paid and sorted out and that clarification is needed in about 5% or 6% of cases. Approximately 870 AEOS files are currently held for 2014 payment pending further processing due to a range of issues. Of those, approximately 400 have been subject to a Department review of the non-productive capital...

Other Questions: Agriculture Schemes Payments (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: I am reluctant to put details on the record when a Garda investigation is taking place. In essence, it is pretty close, I think, to what the Deputy is suggesting. I do not want to assume that anybody is guilty of anything-----

Other Questions: Agriculture Schemes Payments (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: -----until we get the results of a full investigation. Clearly, we are sufficiently concerned that we referred the file to An Garda Síochána. Unfortunately for farmers, some have probably got caught up in this unfairly but it is very difficult for me to distinguish who they are. We will shortly write to the 400 people whose payments have been held up due to this investigation and...

Other Questions: Bovine Disease Controls (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. She and I have spoken about badgers many times and I know where she is coming from. The badger removal strategy, which has been part of our TB eradication programme for some years, has been developed in response to research which has demonstrated that the eradication of the disease in cattle is not a practicable proposition until the reservoir...

Other Questions: Bovine Disease Controls (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: We will look at the report. It would be dishonest of me to say that I do not think that the badger targeted cull programme is being done in as humane a way as we can do it. If there are other suggestions as to how we can do it better, we would happily take them on board but to suggest it is not working would be wrong. This has been a hugely successful programme where we have virtually...

Other Questions: Dairy Sector (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: The preliminary output estimate for the end of the final milk quota year, based on returns to my Department by the milk purchasers and taking into account the relevant butterfat adjustment, is that Ireland will finish 4.34% over quota. This represents a superlevy bill in the region of €69 million.  While the confirmed final position will not be available until August, when all...

Other Questions: Dairy Sector (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: To be clear, many farmers have already paid the money. It has been taken out of their milk cheque. They asked for it to be taken out and have paid on a monthly basis. Some farmers, depending on the arrangement between them and the purchaser, will have to pay a lump sum, or a lump sum will have to come out of their milk cheque. Others have been calculating their liability. We all hate...

Other Questions: Dairy Sector (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: Absolutely. The arrangements between farmer and purchaser are flexible. As long as we receive the lump sum each year, we will be repaid. Let us be clear: my Department has to pay the Commission in full this year, but we are to get our money back in the next three years. Co-operatives should be talking to their members, as they are, about how best to manage cash flow so as not to cause...

Other Questions: Agriculture Schemes Payments (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: With regard to the REPS, total payments of €23.53 million have been made in 2015 to date. The vast majority relate to 2014, while payments for 2015 have not yet commenced. A total of 3,371 REPS 4 applicants have received payments this year to date in respect of their 2014 contracts, while 157 applicants have received payments in respect of their 2013 contracts. In 2014 there were...

Other Questions: Food Harvest 2020 Strategy (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: The key issue in terms of the 2030 targets is that agricultural land use as a whole be taken into account. Rather than simply measuring the emissions from agricultural production systems, we would also have the benefit of the tree planting programme for which the Minister of State, Deputy Tom Hayes, is responsible, which has been ongoing since 1990 and is quite impressive. We have planted a...

Other Questions: Beef Industry (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: I thank the Deputy for raising this question. The forecasted increase in the size of the dairy herd will, undoubtedly, have an impact on the beef sector and, specifically, the number and type of animals entering the supply chain. Dairy breed animals will require different farm management systems and would typically not achieve the same conformation scores as animals from the suckler...