Results 23,061-23,080 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Food Exports (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: The primary indicator of the competitiveness of this country’s food and beverage exports on world markets is the performance of those exports in recent years. The sector’s exports have performed strongly in the last five years, reaching an estimated €10.45 billion in 2014 and consolidating the sizeable increases seen annually since 2010. These have seen the value of...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Equine Industry (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: My Department has introduced a number of regulations in recent years designed to improve the traceability of equines, including horses. The regulations apply equally to thoroughbred and non-thoroughbred horses. With regard to the identification of equines, Commission Regulation 504 of 2008, which sets down the implementing rules relating to the methods of identification of equines, has been...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Fishing Industry (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: My Department and Bord Iascaigh Mhara continue to monitor employment in the seafood industry through CSO statistics and other information gathered by BIM in the course of their work with the industry. On 27 March 2015, I announced plans for a new €241 million development programme for the seafood sector for the period up to 2020, co-funded by the EU through the European Maritime and...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Fish Discards (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: The dumping of “surplus catch”, or “discarding” as it is most commonly referred to, is a complex global problem where unwanted catches are returned to the sea as a result of a number of factors including quota restrictions, high grading, minimum landing sizes and market conditions. Ireland has been to the forefront for many years in the drive to reduce and...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Consultancy Contracts Data (14 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: The information requested by the Deputy in relation to the total amount of expenditure on consultancy by my Department since 2011 is set out in the table below. My Department is always mindful of the costs involved in engaging consultants. External consultants are engaged only when there is a clear need for specialised expertise and following a rigorous examination of skills and resources...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Bord na gCon (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: Bord na gCon is a commercial state body, established in 1958, under the Greyhound Industry Act, 1958, chiefly to control greyhound racing and to improve and develop the greyhound industry. Bord na gCon is a body corporate and a separate legal entity to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. I am informed that Bord na gCon’s marketing and commercial team work closely...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Single Payment Scheme Appeals (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: The person named submitted a 2014 Single Farm Payment/Disadvantaged Areas’ scheme application on 14 May 2014. EU Regulations governing the administration of these schemes require that full and comprehensive administrative checks, including in some cases on farm inspections be completed to confirm eligibility under the schemes. The application of the person named was selected for a...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Direct Payment Scheme (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: As you may be aware my Department is currently examining land parcels declared under the Single Payment Scheme and other area-based Direct Payment Schemes. As part of this review an ineligible area was identified and removed from a number of parcels declared by the person named. In order to clarify the position regarding the area of ineligible features my Department arranged for a ground...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: GLAS Administration (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: My Department will begin validating, ranking and selecting GLAS applications from the first tranche after the closing date for receipt of applications which is 22 May. As set out in the scheme Terms and Conditions, candidates from Tier 1 will receive priority access, followed by Tier 2, followed in turn by Tier 3 candidates (who undergo a separate selection process as required under the...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Bord na gCon Funding (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: The 2013 audited annual report and accounts of Bord na gCon are at present with my Department for consideration and will shortly be presented to Government for noting. The annual report and accounts will then be laid before both Houses of the Oireachtas prior to their publication by Bord na gCon. In 2015 the allocation to Bord na gCon was increased by €2.8m to €13.6m, to...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Bord na gCon Staff (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: Bord na gCon is a commercial state body, established in 1958, under the Greyhound Industry Act, 1958, chiefly to control greyhound racing and to improve and develop the greyhound industry. Bord na gCon is a body corporate and a separate legal entity to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Accordingly, the matter raised by the Deputy is the responsibility of Bord na gCon. It...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Bord na gCon Remit (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: Bord na gCon is the statutory body responsible for the regulation of greyhound racing under the Greyhound Industry Act1958. It has specific powers conferred on it by the Greyhound Industry (Racing) Regulations 2007, S.I. 302 2007, which set out the detailed rules under which greyhound racing is conducted. I understand that Bord na gCon has recently conducted a review of their integrity and...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Bord na gCon Administration (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: Following on from the publication of the Indecon Report in July 2014, Bord na gCon submitted an action plan with timelines for implementing the 27 recommendation 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 informed me that they are continuing to address the skills gap...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Bord na gCon Remit (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: The Irish Coursing Club (ICC) is responsible for the identification and registration of greyhounds in the Irish Greyhound Studbook. The ICC is subject to the general control and direction of Bord na gCon (BNG) under Section 26 (2) of the Greyhound Industry Act, 1958 (the Act). BNG is the statutory body with responsibility for the improvement and development of the greyhound industry,...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Bord na gCon Administration (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: Bord na gCon has statutory responsibility under the Greyhound Industry Acts 1958 and 1993 for the control, development and improvement of the greyhound racing industry. The issue to which the Deputy refers is an operational matter for Bord na gCon. That organisation is specifically empowered under Section 16(1) of the Greyhound Industry Act, 1958, to provide loans for the...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Bord na gCon Administration (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: Bord na gCon is a commercial State body, established under the Greyhound Industry Act 1958, charged with the regulation and development of the greyhound racing industry. The Control Committee and the Control Appeals Committee of BNG are established under legislation (Greyhound Industry, Control Committee and Control Appeal Committee Regulations 2007, S.I. Number 301 of 2007). The Control...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Bord na gCon Remit (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: Bord na gCon is a commercial State body, established under the Greyhound Industry Act 1958, charged with the regulation and development of the greyhound racing industry. The Welfare of Greyhounds Act 2011 specifies standards for greyhound welfare, establishes a register of Greyhound Breeding Establishments and regulates their operation. A Code of Practice in the care and welfare of the...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: GLAS Administration (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: My Department has not issued new Terms and Conditions, it has amended the existing document, as it has done previously, to provide clarity to certain issues where this has been sought or where this was deemed necessary in the light of queries received. The use of ranking for selection has always been a requirement of the GLAS Scheme and the basic ranking system has not changed – it...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Rural Environment Protection Scheme Payments (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: The person named was notified of an SPS debt by letter from the Department on 20thApril 2015, outlining a total debt of €8,699.85 on his 2014 Single Farm Payment. In that letter, he was advised that the debt mentioned, along with any interest charged, if not recouped from him directly, would be debited from any future payments that would fall due to him from the Department of...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Beef Exports (13 May 2015)

Simon Coveney: The re- opening of the US market to Irish beef which was announced in January 2015 was achieved following a step-by step process that involved considerable efforts at political, diplomatic and tech nical level over several years. A significant miles t one was reached in June 2014 when the US side sent a team of inspectors to Ireland in order to carry out an equivalence re-instatement audit...