Results 31,321-31,340 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: Yes. We deliberately have not dealt in a detailed way in this Bill with the laying of poison because it is dealt with under the Wildlife Acts. In the case of a person laying poison - in most cases this will be at farm level - we felt a need to bring clarity to whether he or she needed to get permission from the local authority to do so. What happened recently was shocking. My...

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I move amendment No. 17:In page 24, between lines 39 and 40, to insert the following: “(5) Where a local authority or the Minister proposes to recover the costs of anything done under this section, the authority or Minister, as the case may be, shall—(a) inform by notice the person concerned of the costs (including, but not limited to, salaries, subsistence, hiring of vehicles,...

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: The Deputy will probably have anticipated what I am going to say on this. Amendment No. 18 proposes that a code of practice may issue in respect of animals used for scientific purposes. This is not appropriate, as such animals are subject to EU regulations, given effect to by a 2012 European Union directive on the protection of animals used for scientific purposes. This policy area falls...

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I understand what the Deputy is saying, but there are instances when a Minister needs to introduce regulations quickly, particularly in emergency situations. The status quo as referred to by Deputy Ó Cuív is that those regulations need to be laid before the Oireachtas and can be annulled by it within 21 sitting days, but the Minister can act if he or she needs to do so. I have...

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I move amendment No. 15:In page 18, between lines 38 and 39, to insert the following:“(12) The restriction contained in subsection (1)(e) does not prevent the training of an animal, for the purpose of domesticating the animal and making it safe to manage by persons competent to train that animal, provided that—(a) unnecessary suffering is not thereby caused to the animal, and...

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I move amendment No. 16:In page 20, to delete lines 11 to 14 and substitute the following:“(3) The owner, occupier or person in charge of land on which a poison or a substance containing a poison is laid shall give—(a) at least 7 days’ notice in writing in advance of the laying of the poison or substance, or (b) if the poison or substance is being laid as part of a...

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I recognise that there are strong views on this issue. For some, hare coursing is an unacceptably cruel practice. For others, it is not. It is part of parish and club life and their upbringing with greyhounds and so on. There is a balance I must strike as a Minister in the Bill. It is important to record, for people who have never been to a coursing meeting - as I have not - that...

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: These are the facts. That is not to say I am attempting to convince Deputies who are adamant that coursing should be banned. While I can understand their concerns, I must legislate in a balanced and fair way. We are doing that, and I cannot accept the amendments proposed by Deputy Clare Daly.

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: We had a long discussion on this on Committee Stage.

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: My views are well known. I can understand the alternative view, which has been stated well by Deputies. We are taking a balanced approach and do not propose to ban hare coursing in this legislation.

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I move amendment No. 12:In page 15, to delete lines 8 and 9 and substitute the following:"(11) This section does not apply to—(a) the destruction of an animal in an appropriate and humane manner, or (b) anything done under and in accordance with any of the enactments or Regulations mentioned in section 10(5)*.".

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I accept that. I will accept the amendment.

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I do not propose to accept the amendment. I can understand what the Deputy is getting at, namely, if an authorised officer is to require somebody to stop what they are doing because the officer has a concern there may be a welfare implication, the person who is supposedly offending should have an opportunity to give an explanation. The problem with it is that it would weaken the power of...

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: There are other countries that are not doing that. This is a policy choice. We have decided to ensure Ireland acts as an international benchmark in prioritising welfare standards. We will ensure the standards in this industry are as high as the standards in any other country, if not higher. We will do that through a code of practice and a licensing system. That is the approach we have...

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: We had a good discussion on this on Committee Stage and while I am trying to accommodate people's concerns, there are some things we cannot do. Deputy O'Sullivan wants fur farming banned, but what I propose to do is to introduce a new code of conduct and a new inspection and licensing regime in order to reassure people that within the boundaries of farming, the welfare of the animals is...

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I hope I will do a good day's work in the House. It is true there are only five fur farms. However, it is not true to say this practice is deliberately cruel. This is a farming practice and like poultry or some pig farming, it is an intensive practice. I am not overly supportive of the industry, but I do not feel I should ban it. Quite a number of people here make a living from work...

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: What I said is that it is not deliberately cruel. People do not set out deliberately to be cruel.

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: To reply to the first question, I intend to bring the regulation to the committee. We have several codes of conduct and regulations to agree to relating to fur farming, the digging out of animals and the micro-chipping of dogs. We will also have an entirely new and improved approach towards equine identification also. I intend to bring these issues to the committee in order that we can go...

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I move amendment No. 2:In page 7, line 15, after “1993” to insert “AND THE WELFARE OF GREYHOUNDS ACT 2011”.

Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (27 Mar 2013)

Simon Coveney: I move amendment No. 3:In page 9, line 17, to delete “on the island of Ireland” and substitute “in the State”. Following legal advice it was deemed more correct to make it clear that the Bill is limited to those animals in the State.