Results 321-340 of 4,255 for speaker:Martin Heydon

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: The Biodiversity Regeneration In a Dairying Environment (BRIDE) Project, funded by my Department under the Rural Development Programme 2014-2022, implemented a results-based approach on intensive farms in the River Bride valley of north County Cork aimed at conserving, enhancing and restoring habitats. Working in collaboration with farmers, the project identified priority actions to improve...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: The objective of the Beef Welfare Scheme 2024 is to further increase the economic efficiency of and enhance animal health and husbandry on suckler farms. Payments in the amount of €19.98 million issued to some 23,132 Beef Welfare Scheme 2024 participants eligible for payment in early December 2024. Those not eligible for payment included participants who had not submitted a BISS...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: The Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme (SCEP) aims to provide support to beef farmers to improve the environmental sustainability of the national beef herd. The programme aims to build on the gains delivered in recent years through the Beef Data and Genomics Programme (BDGP) and the Beef Environmental Efficiency Programme (BEEP) by improving the genetic merit of the Irish suckler herd. ...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: My Department provides significant support to the beef sector under the EU co-funded Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme (SCEP) which is complemented by the exchequer-funded 2025 Beef Welfare Scheme (BWS). In April, I announced that 2025 BWS will open for applications in early August. This new support scheme has a budget of €28m and will focus on practical measures to enhance...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: The Areas of Natural Constraints scheme provides payments to people farming land in designated areas that face significant hardships from factors such as remoteness, difficult topography, climatic problems, and poor soil conditions. Support is provided based on the following categories of land: Category 1 land: The system of farming prevalent in Category 1 is characterised by extensive...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: The Tillage Incentive Scheme (TIS) was an emergency support Measure introduced following the war in the Ukraine. The aim of the scheme was to incentivise farmers to increase the eligible tillage crop area in order to assist in reducing the dependency on imported feed material. In 2024, a maintenance payment was available to those, who having converted area to tillage in 2023, and were...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: The Sheep Improvement Scheme (SIS) provides support to sheep farmers for carrying out actions that improve animal health and welfare in the sheep sector. To date €18.5 million has been paid to 16,714 herds under SIS 2024 (Year 2). These payments were paid at a rate of 85%. The balancing payments of 15% for 2024 will commence shortly to cleared cases. To date €15.20 million...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: My Department provides significant support to the sheep sector under the EU co-funded Sheep Improvement Scheme (SIS) and through the exchequer-funded 2025 National Sheep Welfare Scheme. The SIS is the principal dedicated support for the sector with an allocation of €100m over the duration of the current CAP Strategic Plan (CSP). This multi-annual scheme will operate until 2027 and...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: I propose to take Questions Nos. 332 and 333 together. I recognise that the recent storms Darragh and Éowyn have caused varying degrees of damage around the country, including significant damage to trees and that this presents challenges to all stakeholders in forestry. Alongside Minister of State Michael Healy-Rae, I set up a Forest Windblow Taskforce with stakeholders from...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine issued €19 million in payments to the Irish horticulture sector in 2024 through a range of schemes, including the Scheme of Investment Aid for the Development of the Commercial Horticulture Sector, the EU Producer Organisation Scheme for the Fruit and Vegetable Sector, the Schemes of Investment Aid for Innovation and Diversification in...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: The current budget allocated to the Agri-Food Regulator for 2025 is €1.96m so a 25% increase in budget for 2026 would amount to an additional €490,000. It is important to note that the Agri-Food Regulator's level of funding for subsequent years may be altered as part of the normal DAFM budget and expenditure revision process and that the figures detailed above are based on the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: I propose to take Questions Nos. 336 and 337 together. I propose to take PQs 336 and PQ 337 together. The Forestry Programme 2023-2027 was approved by the Government in September 2023 and is funded with €1.3bn. This funding represents the largest ever investment by an Irish Government in tree-planting, put in place to incentivise farmers to the greatest extent possible to...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: As part of Budget 2025 my Department secured an allocation of €5 million for 2025 to provide support to the group of farmers commonly referred to as forgotten farmers. A key first step in this process was to launch the online survey to assist in determining the number of farmers who meet the long-standing criteria for forgotten farmers. This scheme will be called the scheme to support...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: Animal welfare is a key priority for me as Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine and for the Government. In 2020, my Department allocated €3.2 million in funding for animal welfare organisations, under the animal welfare grants programme. In December 2023, my Department announced the record allocation of €6 million in funding, again under the animal welfare grants...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Consultations (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: The development of policy is based on, among other things, scientific and other evidence, internal and cross-government consultation, consultation with state agencies, public consultation and expert advice from both within the Department and elsewhere. There are core business areas within the Department that have personnel with the required technical and scientific expertise to inform key...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Agriculture Schemes (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: The person named submitted an application under the ACRES General stream and was approved into Tranche 1 of the scheme, with a commencement date of 1st January 2023. An ACRES inspection took place on the holding on the 13 February 2025. A notification of the inspection findings issued to the person named by letter dated 13 May 2025 and the following penalties were outlined: 1. A...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Fishing Industry (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: The most recent data available (2023) indicates that the total annual fuel consumption for the active fishing fleet is approximately 61 million litres. Using a straight-line extrapolation and without accounting for seasonal variation, vessel activity levels, or vessel size, the indicative cost of providing a €0.20 per litre fuel aid support across different time periods is outlined in...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Fishing Industry (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: The EU typically defines the inshore fleet as vessels under 12 metres in length. However, in order to provide more complete costings data has been provided for vessels under 18 metres as well as 12 metres. It should be noted that vessels between 12 and 18 metres are generally considered part of the large-scale fleet (LSF) under EU classifications. The figures presented reflect gross...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: The responsibility for the development and maintenance of local authority owned piers, harbours and slipways rests with each local authority in the first instance. The primary governance role for local authorities rests with the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. However, my Department has, as part of its annual Fishery Harbour and Coastal Infrastructure Development...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Expenditure (28 May 2025)

Martin Heydon: My Department operates and maintains six designated State-owned Fishery Harbour Centres (FHCs), located at Castletownbere, Dingle, Dunmore East, Howth, Killybegs and Ros An Mhíl under statute. This Department profiles a 5-7 year capital programme of works consistent with the objectives of the National Development Plan, and subject to project feasibility and prioritisation of resources....