Results 11,261-11,280 of 23,950 for speaker:Charlie McConalogue

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Trade Agreements (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: Following the announcement of the political agreement between the EU and Mercosur on a Free Trade Agreement, a whole-of-Government review on the impact of the agreement on Ireland was initiated. The Department of Enterprise Trade and Employment, in collaboration with my Department, commissioned consultants to carry out an Economic and Sustainability Impact Assessment (ESIA) for Ireland....

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Departmental Reviews (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: Wool production is an important component of agri-industry. It is a sustainable, organic, renewable natural material which can be used in a wide range of products such as textiles, fertilisers, insulation and packaging. Following the allocation of the significant amount of €100,000 for the review of the potential demand in international markets for wool-based products such as...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Farm Safety (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: The CAP Strategic Plan is currently under development in the Department. The SWOT and Needs assessment process has been completed and Health and Safety has been identified as an area that requires further attention. Health and safety elements will be incorporated as appropriate and my officials are developing measures to reflect this. You can expect to see Health and Safety feature...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Regulatory Bodies (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: As the Deputy will be aware, there is a commitment in the Programme for Government for the establishment of a new authority to be called the National Food Ombudsman (NFO) or similar, to enforce the Unfair Trading Practices (UTP) Directive. A two stage approach is being undertaken to deliver the commitment. Firstly, on April 28th I signed Statutory Instrument No. 198 of 2021 which sets...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Sector (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: Forestry and the issues currently affecting the sector are a priority for my Department and for me as I fully recognise its importance to farmers, forest owners, forestry contractors, sawmills and wood processors and to the rural economy as a whole. I know that in order to fully deliver on the potential of the sector, we need a well-functioning licensing system. I am the first to...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Animal Diseases (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: Levels of bovine TB have been rising since 2016, and this deteriorating trend has continued into the first quarter of 2021. The current 12-month rolling herd incidence at 9thMay 2021 is 4.27% compared to 3.92% on 10thMay 2020. The 12-month rolling average number of reactors up to 9thMay 2021 (21,926) is considerably higher than figure at 10thMay 2020 (18,813), indicating that increase in...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Planning Issues (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: I am familiar with the situation referred to by the Deputy. I acknowledge that the company sees this investment as an important part of their response to Brexit, by diversifying production in order to reduce dependence on the UK market. An Taisce, as is its right, sought and was granted leave, for a Judicial Review into the decision of the relevant local authority to grant planning...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Sector (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: Forestry and issues currently affecting the sector are a priority for my Department and for me and I fully recognise its importance to farmers, forest owners, forestry contractors, sawmills and wood processors and to the rural economy as a whole. I know that in order to fully deliver on the potential of the sector, we need a well-functioning licensing system. I am the first to...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Greyhound Industry (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: The Irish Coursing Club (ICC) is the organisation charged with the role of Keeper of the Irish Stud Book since 1923. The stud book records pedigrees, ownerships, breeding data and transfers of ownership primarily of all greyhounds. Greyhounds are required to be named with the Club. TheICC is subject to the general control and direction of Rásaíocht Con Éireann. The ICC...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Greyhound Industry (20 May 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 RCÉ Strategic Plan contains a medium term objective for...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Schemes (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: The Programme for Government commits to rewarding farmers for adapting to more sustainable methods of farming and to the development of a new agri-environment scheme capable of delivering broad environmental and biodiversity benefits that will align financial supports with climate objectives. To advance this aim, the Results-Based Environmental Agri Pilot (REAP) opened for applications on...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Fishing Industry (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: As the Deputy is well aware, the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) will, unfortunately, have an impact on our fishing industry. However, this impact would have been far greater had the Barnier Task Force agreed to UK demands, or had we been in a no-deal scenario which would have seen all EU vessels barred from UK waters and subsequent displacement into Ireland's fishing zone. I...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Schemes (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: The Beef Environmental Efficiency Programme – Suckler (BEEP - S) Scheme targets the weaning efficiency of suckler cows and calves by measuring the live weight of the calf at weaning as a percentage of the cow's live weight. In recognition of the crucial role of animal health and welfare in economic and environmental efficiency, applicants to the scheme can also select from a number of...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: I wish to advise the Deputy, that since the start of the pandemic, the Department has been involved in funding to provide support to various affected sectors. - The European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) has supported two dedicated schemes to the Seafood Sector. The first of these, the EMFF COVID-19 Aquaculture Support Scheme, assisted in maintaining viable aquaculture...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Trade Relations (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: The process towards gaining access for Irish beef to the Republic of Korea has been ongoing for a number of years. The Republic of Korea is a top priority market for the market access team in the Department. However several important steps remain to be completed before access can be gained and Irish beef exported. Ireland's application for beef is currently on the fifth of an...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Milk Supply (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: Since the removal of milk quotas in 2015, the volume of milk produced by Irish dairy farmers has increased from approximately 5.5 billion litres to almost 8.3 billion litres in 2020. However, it should be noted that whilst milk production in Ireland has increased significantly in this period, the rate of increase has eased. This increase in milk production has been accompanied by parallel...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Harbours and Piers (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: The Department owns, operates and maintains six designated State-owned Fishery Harbour Centres (FHC), located at Castletownbere, Dingle, Dunmore East, Howth, Killybegs and Ros An Mhíl under statute. Funding is made available on an annual basis by the Department to the Fishery Harbour Centres, including Ros an Mhíl, via the Fishery Harbour and Coastal Infrastructure Development...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Fishing Industry (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: I have asked the Seafood Sector Taskforce to examine the implications arising from the Trade and Cooperation Agreement agreed between the European Union and the UK for the Irish Fishing industry and coastal communities particularly dependent upon it and to recommend initiatives that could be taken to provide supports for development and restructuring so as to ensure a profitable and...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Common Agricultural Policy (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: Conditionality in the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) will replace the current CAP cross compliance and certain current "greening" requirements. Beneficiaries of CAP farm payments must comply with the requirements of Conditionality. There are two elements to Conditionality: 1.Good Agricultural and Environmental Conditions (GAECs) The GAECs set minimum standards that beneficiaries of...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (20 May 2021)

Charlie McConalogue: It has always been clear that Brexit had the potential to be profoundly disruptive, particularly for agrifood businesses on the island of Ireland. The Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland is designed to minimise that disruption and reduce the worst of the impact of Brexit and I am satisfied that, with the Protocol in place, Irish agrifood businesses can continue to benefit from the free...