Results 14,401-14,420 of 16,057 for speaker:Mary Coughlan

Written Answers — Food Agency Co-operation Council: Food Agency Co-operation Council (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: The Food Agency Co-operation Council was established in 2000 under the aegis of my Department to promote the fullest practical co-operation between the State agencies involved in the food industry, in the interests of the optimum development of the industry. The council has an independent chairman, Mr. Padraic White. The inaugural meeting of the council took place in March 2000 and it has met...

Written Answers — Single Farm Payment: Single Farm Payment (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: Under the new single payment scheme farmers receiving direct aid are required to respect the various statutory management requirements set down in EU legislation on the environment, food safety, animal health, and welfare, and plant health and to maintain the farm in good agricultural and environmental condition, GAEC. There will also be an obligation on the member state to ensure that there...

Written Answers — Farm Safety: Farm Safety (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: I remain very concerned about the level of safety on our farms and I support wholeheartedly the Programme of Work 2005 of the Health and Safety Authority which is the State authority charged with overall responsibility for promotion and enforcement of workplace health and safety. The authority has a proactive inspection and enforcement programme which focuses on high risk sectors, including...

Written Answers — Ministerial Visit: Ministerial Visit (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 55, 61 and 100 together. I visited the United States over the period 9 to 16 April. This was my first visit to the US as Minister for Agriculture and Food and had as its overall objective the consolidation and further development of political, investment and trade links between Ireland and the US in the sphere of agriculture, with particular emphasis on food,...

Written Answers — Food Industry: Food Industry (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: The potato industry makes an important contribution to the rural and national economy. The farm gate value of the sector is estimated at €85 million in 2004 which represents a fall on the previous year due mainly to lower prices and a reduction in fresh potato consumption. Since taking up office in the Department of Agriculture and Food, I have become very conscious of the need to bring the...

Written Answers — Genetically Modified Organisms: Genetically Modified Organisms (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: The Deputy is obviously referring to a draft document prepared by the Commission for a meeting of the college of Commissioners, held last March, to review the current state of the European GMO legislative framework. It should be noted that following that meeting, the Commission confirmed its full confidence in the existing regulatory system and did not consider it necessary to call on the...

Written Answers — EU Directives: EU Directives (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 58 and 78 together. Promotion and development of renewable energy in Ireland are matters in the first instance for the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources. My Department is represented on the bioenergy strategy group established by the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural resources to consider policy options and support...

Written Answers — Live Exports: Live Exports (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: I am aware of the recent film produced by Compassion in World Farming, CIWF, and the issues raised therein. However, I should point out that this film did not actually show any ill treatment of Irish cattle during their transportation to the Lebanon. The live export trade is important to the livestock sector here, as it provides an important outlet for categories of cattle thereby helping to...

Written Answers — Food Safety Standards: Food Safety Standards (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: Detailed EU legislation lays down the conditions that member states must apply to the production of and trade in products of animal origin, including meat and meat extracts, as well as to imports of these products from third countries. Under harmonised legislation a series of health and supervisory requirements are applied in the member states to ensure that animal products are produced to...

Written Answers — Grant Aid: Grant Aid (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: The level of funding available to each member state under the single payment scheme has already been agreed under European Council Regulation 1782/2003. The amount available to Ireland in 2005, including the dairy premium, is €1.260 billion and this will increase to €1.322 billion as and from 2006 onwards. The envelope of money available to each member state represents the average value...

Written Answers — Animal Welfare Bodies: Animal Welfare Bodies (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: In recent years, my Department has made ex gratia payments to a number of organisations directly involved in the delivery of animal care and welfare services to help towards their work. The amounts paid by my Department are as follows. In 2001, €650,741 was allocated to 52 organisations, in 2002, €500,000 was allocated to 67 organisations, in 2003, €850,000 was allocated to 80...

Written Answers — Farm Household Incomes: Farm Household Incomes (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: The CSO 1999-2000 household budget survey indicates that approximately 60% of farm household income comes from off-farm sources. This indicates that many farm families do not solely rely on farm income for their livelihood and off-farm employment has become increasingly common for farm families. Interestingly, much of this off-farm employment is related to agriculture and the agri-food...

Written Answers — World Trade Negotiations: World Trade Negotiations (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: Following intensive negotiations, agreement was reached in Geneva in August 2004 on a framework setting out the general outline and content of the new World Trade Organisation, WTO, agreement. The detailed implementation of this framework is the subject of ongoing negotiation at technical and political level and is likely to conclude at the WTO ministerial conference in Hong Kong in December...

Written Answers — Animal Feedstuffs: Animal Feedstuffs (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: I advise the Deputy that there were two separate incidents in the four week period from 18 October to 11 November 2004, in which traces of terrestrial animal bone were found in samples of imported feed material. The affected feed material and associated compound feed was subsequently impounded, recalled, where necessary, and detained by my Department. The first incident refers to two...

Written Answers — EU Directives: EU Directives (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: Of the 16 EU directives to be transposed into national law for which my Department has responsibility, none are overdue for transposition. I intend to have the directives implemented by the due date in each case.

Written Answers — Single Payment Scheme: Single Payment Scheme (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: My Department has been aware, from an early stage in the negotiations leading to the introduction of the single payment scheme, of the possible implications for retired farmers who had leased their holdings. In so far as it has proved possible in the context of the EU regulations governing the single payment scheme, and following lengthy discussions with the European Commission, provision has...

Written Answers — Farm Retirement Scheme: Farm Retirement Scheme (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: The rate of pension payable under the 1994 scheme of early retirement from farming is the maximum amount provided for by the EU Council regulation under which the scheme was introduced. The regulation does not provide for indexation of payments. My Department's proposals for the current early retirement scheme, which commenced on 27 November 2000 and is one of the measures in the CAP rural...

Written Answers — Farm Safety: Farm Safety (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 70 and 105 together. The Health and Safety Authority is the State authority charged with overall responsibility for promotion and enforcement of workplace health and safety. The authority has a proactive inspection and enforcement programme, Programme of Work 2005, which focuses on high risk sectors, including agriculture, and aims to achieve an improvement in...

Written Answers — Milk Production Partnerships: Milk Production Partnerships (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: Since the introduction of milk production partnerships, MPPs, in 2002 the regulations have been reviewed regularly to ensure the balance between the special treatment afforded to partnerships and the restrictions on their formation is appropriate to the circumstances of the sector. I am satisfied this objective has been met. While the number of standard MPPs is still quite low, I am satisfied...

Written Answers — Farmer Numbers: Farmer Numbers (4 May 2005)

Mary Coughlan: The most recent figures available from the CSO show that there were 77,900 full-time farmers, as defined by the CSO, in 2003 a drop of 20,400 since 1997. Over the same period the number of part-time farmers increased by 7,900 to 57,200. The agri-vision 2015 committee indicated in its report that it believed the trend to part-time farming using a somewhat different definition than the CSO will...