Results 7,221-7,240 of 23,957 for speaker:Charlie McConalogue

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Fishing Industry (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: As the Deputy is aware, Ireland has never made any claims to Rockall, nor has Ireland ever recognised British sovereignty claims over Rockall and accordingly has not recognised a 12 nautical mile territorial sea around it either. This remains the position of the Government. The Government has been in contact with the relevant Scottish and UK authorities on Rockall over recent years and...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: Both the Programme for Government and Food Vision 2030 acknowledge and underline the importance of our food producers, particularly our farmers and fishers and the importance of maintaining vibrant rural and coastal communities. Support is available to small food producers and businesses in a variety of ways. For initiatives such as the development of farm shops, niche products and...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Animal Diseases (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: I am acutely aware of the emotional and financial burden placed on farm families following an outbreak of TB. I am committed to reducing TB rates as quickly as possible The main compensation provision of the bovine TB programme is the On Farm Market Valuation Scheme which compensates eligible herd-owners up to the market value an individual animal would have attained on the open market at...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Sector (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has committed to issuing 5,250 forestry licences this year, which is an increase of 30% on the number issued last year. This is an ambitious target but one which we are committed to meeting, The Forestry Licensing Plan was published at the start of the year and sets out a range of forestry priorities set to run for the whole of...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: United Nations (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: The 2022 State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report underpins the stark reality on the escalating number of people worldwide who face hunger every day. The latest figures show an increase of 150 million people in 2019 to a staggering level of 829 million people at the end of 2021. The COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, conflict and the increasing cost of fuel, fertiliser and...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: I am acutely aware of the challenges facing our farm families over the cost of inputs and the cost of doing business. Over the past year significant price rises have occurred primarily in the energy sector with natural gas and oil prices reaching record highs. These price rises have significant implications across all sectors, including the agri-food sector. These price rises have been...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: The current situation in relation to the cost and availability of farm inputs is a significant concern and one that I am acutely aware of. Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine led to significant hikes in energy, feed and fertiliser prices and significant concerns around supply chain disruption. Earlier in the crisis, I established the National Fodder and Food Security...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Sector (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: Since the first finding of ash dieback disease in Ireland, the Department has provided support totalling over €7 million to owners of ash plantations impacted by disease through the Reconstitution Scheme (Ash Dieback) (introduced in 2013) and more recently the Reconstitution and Underplanting Scheme (RUS – Ash dieback) introduced in July 2020. Since the commencement of the...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Schemes (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: A new agri-environmental scheme, to be known as the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (‘ACRES’), is currently with the EU Commission for approval as part of Ireland’s draft CAP Strategic Plan. €1.5 billion in funding has also been committed to the scheme over the lifetime of the next CAP. Details of the draft scheme were announced on 21st June 2022 to...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Animal Welfare (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: Both I and the Department are fully committed to supporting sustainable, One Health, One Welfare initiatives in line with the Programme for Government. Working Together for Animal Welfare, Ireland's Animal Welfare Strategy 2021-2025, continues to support a number of urban horse projects nationwide. These projects can foster community leadership and education in responsible horse ownership for...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: The Department collects data on fertiliser sales from manufacturers to retailers over the fertiliser year (October to September). The following table sets out chemical nitrogen fertiliser sales for quarters one and two of 2020, 2021 and 2022 for comparison purposes. Quarter three data for this year will not be available until August. - Tonnes N 1/10/19...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: As the Deputy will be aware, all sectors of the economy have been set with challenging targets in order to achieve the economy wide 51% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. The agriculture sector will need to reduce emissions by between 22-30% by 2030, this will require transformational change across each one of our 140,000 family farms. I have been clear that a whole of sector,...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: As the Deputy may be aware, all sectors of the economy have been set with challenging targets in order to achieve the economy wide 51% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. The agriculture sector will need to reduce emissions by between 22% and 30% by 2030, this will require transformational change across each one of our 140,000 family farms. I have been clear that a whole-of-sector,...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: I thank the Deputy for this question on such an important topic. This Government has prioritised farm safety, health and wellbeing. Dedicated funding of €2.25m was allocated in Budget 2022 for a range of initiatives including initiatives to support increased awareness of the importance of mental health among farmers. My Department is co-funding, with the HSE and the Department...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Animal Welfare (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: Animal welfare is very high on my agenda and considerable resources and funding are provided by my Department to address the issue. The Programme for Government commitment to double the funding allocated to animal welfare organisations over a two year period was based on the 2020 budget allocation of €2.435m. Savings elsewhere in the Department's vote enabled the eventual awarding of...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Sports Funding (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: An important pillar of Government policy is to ensure that the horse and greyhound racing industries achieve their maximum potential, and in so doing, contribute to economic and social development over a wide geographic distribution. The horse and greyhound racing industries make a valuable contribution to our economy. It is estimated that the thoroughbred industry has an annual economic...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Organic Farming (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: I am committed to implementing the National Organic Strategy 2025 which outlines the actions and supports necessary to remove the barriers to the growth of the organic sector. One of the main objectives of the strategy is to develop a viable Organic Food Sector in Ireland producing a wide range of organic products to meet the ever increasing domestic and export markets opportunities. ...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: The Deputy will be aware that Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (DETE) has lead responsibility for employment permits. Arising from ongoing engagement with sector stakeholders, my Department is in regular contact with that Department regarding the labour shortages that exist in certain sub-sectors of agri-food. Granting employment permits is one method for helping to fill...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: The current situation in relation to the cost and availability of farm inputs is a significant concern. Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine led to significant hikes in energy, feed and fertiliser prices and significant concerns around supply chain disruption. Earlier in the crisis, I established the National Fodder and Food Security Committee to prepare an industry response to...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (14 Jul 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: The Deputy may be aware that I established the National Fodder and Food Security Committee in March of this year. I tasked the Committee with preparing a multi-sectoral response to identify those issues that will arise for feed, fodder, fertiliser and other inputs as a result of the war in the Ukraine, and to develop contingency plans and advice to assist farmers in managing their farm...