Results 16,161-16,180 of 23,975 for speaker:Charlie McConalogue
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ongoing Fodder Crisis: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Apr 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: I thank the Minister for coming in today to discuss this important matter. It is disappointing we do not have more time to discuss it today and that we are under such time pressure given that plenty of notice was given of the request for this meeting bearing in mind the importance of the issue under discussion. The Chairman indicated that we must conclude by 3.50 p.m. It is disappointing...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ongoing Fodder Crisis: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Apr 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: Regarding the €1.5 million limit on the import subsidy, the terms and conditions of the scheme indicate that if it is over-subscribed over and above €1.5 million, the payment-----
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ongoing Fodder Crisis: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Apr 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: The Department's own press releases did that. I welcome the Minister's confirmation that it will not be limited to that if necessary but the terms and conditions of the scheme also confined it to-----
- Topical Issue Debate: Fodder Crisis (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: The Minister's response indicates that he has been sleepwalking on this issue for the past number of months. He still has not woken up to the fact that, as Minister, he must take action and assist farmers across the country who are in trouble. It affects not just individuals, but it is on a collective scale. That requires collective action on the part of the Minister. He must recognise...
- Topical Issue Debate: Fodder Crisis (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: This grouping of Fianna Fáil Deputies has come together jointly to put this Topical Issue to the Minister in order to try to stir him to recognise the very real fodder shortage across the country. Unfortunately, the Minister has shown himself to be very much out of touch with the farming community in respect of how serious an issue it is, having spent most of the past number of months...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: I thank the Minister for taking the time to come in today. The Minister started off with CAP, so I will touch on it first as well. The overall objective has to be maintaining the budget and ensuring that it is protected. In terms of the commitment that Ireland is giving and also the Minister's sense of where other European countries are at, how confident is the Minister that the budget as...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: I seek clarification on that point.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: I want to come in-----
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: For further clarification on the issue of the backstop, there was an agreement in December where both sides took a very different interpretation. Does the Minister disagree with that?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: She is committed to a backstop. However, unless that is defined, then she is not committed.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: She agrees to what she agreed to in December. Is that right?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: However, she interprets that entirely differently from the European Union.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: The Taoiseach interpreted it as bulletproof at the time. However, it is riddled with holes at this stage. We hope it will come eventually to be something which is solid, but until such time as it is agreed what was agreed, then there is nothing solid about it. I refer to when the European Union published its draft legal text which clarified its interpretation of the December agreement....
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: No. Do not be asking me what part I do not agree with. Talk to Prime Minister May about what part she does not agree with. To me, it seems clear that it means that the whole of the UK, Britain and Northern Ireland, would remain aligned to the European Union. That is what that means to me.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: If it was to fall through and the British Government were to take the same interpretation of it, that would be great. However, it has not. It has an entirely different interpretation of it. That means it can do its own thing trade-wise, there is no border in the Irish Sea yet there would be no border on the island of Ireland, which are two contradictory outcomes. We then have disagreement...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: Absolutely.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: Certainly not.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: The Minister seems to be ignoring the fact that there is total disagreement about what the backstop is. There is total disagreement there. It is as plain as the nose on our face.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: They have been saying all along the way that they can leave the EU, do all the things they want, there will be no Border and there will be this mythical frictionless Border. We know it is a load of codswallop. We would be totally wrong to take them at face value because it should not be taken at face value. Until the backstop is agreed in terms of the legal text, it is not solid-----
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Post-EU Council Meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries: Discussion (29 Mar 2018)
Charlie McConalogue: The final point I want to make is that three or four weeks ago, Europe was talking about the legal text for the backstop, which it published and which it was going to press and basically require the UK to agree to. The UK said it would not agree to it and did not agree with the legal text, so instead of Europe forcing the issue and saying it will not move on until the UK agrees to the legal...