Results 1,441-1,460 of 7,773 for speaker:Michael Fitzmaurice

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Hospital Services (4 Jul 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: A total of €22 billion is being spent on health in this country. It is ironic that the Minister of State says that a sixth of the population is in that area, which covers one third of the country. It is a big area and we should try to bring the services as close as we can. These people were prepared to travel. There is no question of that.

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Hospital Services (4 Jul 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: These people were prepared to travel 115 km each way. Yet, we did not have a service in the whole of the west of Ireland. We did not have it in Letterkenny, Sligo, Castlebar, Roscommon or Galway, which was to be the centre of excellence. It is a damning indictment of our country - and I come from the agricultural sector - that if that night I had an animal that lost part of its foot or was...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Hospital Services (4 Jul 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: I thank the Minister of State for coming in. It is a pity the Minister for Health is not present. I think an inquiry needs to be held into this. The child is 17 years of age. He had an accident. NoWDOC is in chaos in Carrick-on-Shannon. This child went to Sligo hospital but it does not have the facilities to deal with his situation. We are supposed to have so-called centres of...

Environmental Protection Agency Water Quality Report 2022: Statements (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: I welcome the opportunity to speak on this report. I agree with Deputy Murnane O’Connor about septic tanks. If one did not register, one had to pay a fiver to do so at a later date. If late registration costs €20 now, that is fine. However, we should look at water quality. I ask the Minister of State to do so because it is stupid for a county council to do the 5% they are...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: I thank the witnesses for coming before the committee. Earlier they spoke about exports and imports. How much vegetable produce in exported from Ireland, leaving aside mushrooms? Where does it go?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: Nothing is exported.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: With regard to the peat situation the witnesses have outlined the need but there seems to be no solution for the mushroom sector. What about other horticulture sectors that require peat? How are they fixed?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: How does coir work?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: Right.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: Is it more expensive?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: Mr. McCormack spoke about the number of people who have left the industry. There have been meetings with the Minister. Are there forward plans? We should have learned lessons with regard to the war in Ukraine and food security. Does the Department have a plan to encourage people to get into the industry? Does it have a pathway forward whereby we will avoid realising someday that, having...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: Is it a big problem in every sector? I am involved in plant hire and there is a shortage of labour. What is the solution? Is it streamlined permits?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: What is the solution? It is affecting almost everything in rural Ireland at present, whether it is people making silage with tractors or people growing strawberries. Even hire shops for building in Dublin cannot get mechanics. They are looking to see whether the Minister of State, Deputy Niall Collins, can get permits for South Africans or whoever.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: Yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: How co-ordinated is the industry? Is there any long-term-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: I am speaking about forward buying and trying to get a deal done for a two or three-year period so that people will know they are okay. Do contracts such as this exist or is it a race to the bottom with the supermarkets kicking the daylights out of the producers telling them that someone in Spain-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: There are no signed contracts from any of the major retailers.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: Does the IFA have a contract or not?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: I ask Ms Brennan to explain the something to me, as it often baffles me. When we were youngsters growing vegetables in gardens, including lettuce, onions or whatever, we pulled them and brought them in. After a day or two they were going yellowish. How come with a lot of imported stuff, lettuce could be in the fridge for nearly a month and it is still looking like it did the first day it...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Consolidation in Horticultural Grower Numbers: Discussion (28 Jun 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: This is in light of what the witnesses have said about the mushroom industry and the research they have done indicating that there is nothing suitable. Unfortunately, we have invited three Ministers in. There is a bit of cat and mouse going on about what is happening. There was been a court case in the past week where the EPA brought growers to court about a hydrologically linked area....