Results 9,521-9,540 of 23,950 for speaker:Charlie McConalogue

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Greyhound Industry (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: Rásaíocht Con Éireann (RCÉ) is a commercial state body, established under the Greyhound Industry Act, 1958 chiefly to control greyhound racing and to improve and develop the greyhound industry. RCÉ is a body corporate and a separate legal entity to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. The question raised by the Deputy is an operational matter for...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Greyhound Industry (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: Rásaíocht Con Éireann (RCÉ) is a commercial state body, established under the Greyhound Industry Act, 1958 chiefly to control greyhound racing and to improve and develop the greyhound industry. RCÉ is a body corporate and a separate legal entity to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. The question raised by the Deputy is an operational matter for...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Greyhound Industry (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: Rásaíocht Con Éireann (RCÉ) is a commercial state body, established under the Greyhound Industry Act, 1958 chiefly to control greyhound racing and to improve and develop the greyhound industry. RCÉ is a body corporate and a separate legal entity to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. The question raised by the Deputy is an operational matter for...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Greyhound Industry (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: Rásaíocht Con Éireann (RCÉ) is a commercial state body, established under the Greyhound Industry Act, 1958 chiefly to control greyhound racing and to improve and develop the greyhound industry. RCÉ is a body corporate and a separate legal entity to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. The question raised by the Deputy is an operational matter for...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Greyhound Industry (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: Rásaíocht Con Éireann (RCÉ) is a commercial state body, established under the Greyhound Industry Act, 1958 chiefly to control greyhound racing and to improve and develop the greyhound industry. RCÉ is a body corporate and a separate legal entity to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. The question raised by the Deputy is an operational matter for...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Departmental Staff (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: I acknowledge the high standard of conduct and performance demonstrated by the vast majority of staff in my Department. When a concern arises that appropriate standards may have not been met by individual staff members, these cases are managed in accordance with the appropriate Civil Service policy – including the Civil Service Disciplinary Code. Instances where, following...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: I thank the Chair and members for the opportunity to be here today to discuss this issue. 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 in a very wide geographic distribution around the country. The horse and greyhound racing industries...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: I thank Senator Daly. I recognise, as I did in my opening comments, the work of the committee in putting together the report which it submitted to me in the past week or two. It was important work to which the committee gave significant time and attention. It is an example of how this committee has been effective and can operate effectively by engaging with stakeholders and doing reports...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: As I mentioned, we received the committee's report in the past week to two weeks. Obviously, the committee put much work and effort into it. I am considering the recommendations and each of the points the committee made before responding. I will take the required time to give that a full assessment before reverting to the committee and giving clarity on how I intend to proceed. The...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: Overall, it is 10% of its State funding, at a minimum. It is spending more than that as things stand. Looking at it across the board, the projected spend of RCÉ for this year on traceability, in particular, was €336,000. For care and welfare programmes, it was €750,000; for veterinary care at tracks, it was more than €300,000; for the national greyhound...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: The funding is absolutely contingent on the highest of welfare standards and our prioritisation of welfare is part of that funding. There is ongoing engagement between our teams. Dr. Kevin Smyth is the assistant secretary responsible for that, and Ms Caroline Ball also works on an ongoing basis on the oversight of that. Will Dr. Smyth give us a flavour of how that engagement works over the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: I thank Senator Boyhan. He outlined the importance of the funding through the horse and greyhound fund to the horse racing sector. I agree with him on the importance of that. He also outlined the importance of ensuring that welfare is at the core of all racing. That is absolutely the case, and it is crucial that it be the case. The public expects it. It has to be uniform and consistent...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: I thank the Deputy. I know how important tracks are to each area. They are fondly regarded and a key part of the character of the areas in which they are located. Overall, it is a matter for Rásaíocht Con Éireann to consider and manage. The Department asked NewERA to produce a report on Rásaíocht Con Éireann's financial situation and the health and future of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: I thank Deputy Kehoe and the Chair. The first point Deputy Kehoe made was on the importance of integrity and the highest standards in oversight in the racing industry. We all agree that is critical. Maintenance of the highest standards is essential to the future of the industry and the sector. I know from the committee's report that it found that the testing regime and the systems in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: I will ask the assistant secretary, Dr. Kevin Smith, to go through the process in respect of the assessments that have been made and the engagements that are in place to work out the requirement and the final funding allocation.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: As Deputy Carthy has said, it is open to the Minister to change that at any time but the two industries can be subject to similar challenges. There are lots of similarities between them and the last year to 18 months speaks to that in relation to the impact of Covid. Both industries are very much subject to race attendances and have very similar models in that regard. By and large, in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: This is something that Deputy Carthy raised at the committee last year as well, when he made the same point. Indeed, he has also brought it up in debates in the Dáil. A key driver behind the health and pre-eminence of the sector nationally is that we are able to compete in terms of horse racing. The competitions that take place attract international horses and ensure that right...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: It is really important that we support all sectors. HRI is aware of that and has ongoing and continuous engagement with all stakeholders and all of those involved at all levels within horse racing. It is important that all levels are supported because the next level depends very much on the health of the level underneath it and on the foundation levels, going right back to the small...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: I thank the Deputy for his questions. I acknowledge this is in one of the submissions that he has made as part of his report on traceability, and it is certainly something I will reflect on further. HRI is working with Weatherbys Ireland and the IHRB to develop a comprehensive thoroughbred database to improve traceability via improved Weatherbys' e-passport functionality, and that work is...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2016: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (24 Nov 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: To respond to the earlier point about public investment in HRI, as the Deputy will know, this year funding has been set at €70.4 million. The Deloitte report was published in 2017. It showed that the industry is worth €1.84 billion to the economy and is responsible for 28,500 jobs. The Government has a national funding commitment of €70.4 million this year, which is a...