Results 18,161-18,180 of 18,372 for speaker:Brendan Smith

Government Record: Motion (Resumed). (5 Jul 2006)

Brendan Smith: With the assistance of the Chair, I will give the Deputy one statistic——

Government Record: Motion (Resumed). (5 Jul 2006)

Brendan Smith: The figure is 0.1%. I remind Deputy Stagg who has consistently spoken against the interests of Irish farming——

Government Record: Motion (Resumed). (5 Jul 2006)

Brendan Smith: I never heard the Deputy speak in favour of anything.

Government Record: Motion (Resumed). (5 Jul 2006)

Brendan Smith: For the first time, exports of food and drink from this country amounted to €7.5 billion.

Government Record: Motion (Resumed). (5 Jul 2006)

Brendan Smith: I get excited when I listen to untruths. We have listened to Deputy Stagg for too long in this House misrepresenting rural Ireland, misrepresenting the farmers and misrepresenting the agri-food sector. I am very glad to support the Government amendment to a motion that has no substance. It is a motion put forward by two parties who lack direction and who lack any distinct policy. They only...

Government Record: Motion (Resumed). (5 Jul 2006)

Brendan Smith: I get excited when I listen to untruths. I believe in the truth.

Government Record: Motion (Resumed). (5 Jul 2006)

Brendan Smith: Get them out.

Government Record: Motion (Resumed). (5 Jul 2006)

Brendan Smith: It is a proud record.

Government Record: Motion (Resumed). (5 Jul 2006)

Brendan Smith: Exactly.

Government Record: Motion (Resumed). (5 Jul 2006)

Brendan Smith: That is an outrageous accusation. It should be withdrawn.

Government Record: Motion (Resumed). (5 Jul 2006)

Brendan Smith: It is an outrageous accusation.

Government Record: Motion (Resumed). (5 Jul 2006)

Brendan Smith: He has nothing to say.

Food Labelling. (27 Jun 2006)

Brendan Smith: The enforcement of food labelling regulations is centralised in the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, FSAI, which ensures that the appropriate controls are carried out by the relevant official agencies. The official agencies include the Health Service Executive, my Department, the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, the Office of the Director of Consumer Affairs and...

Food Labelling. (27 Jun 2006)

Brendan Smith: As Deputy Naughten knows, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act 1998 contains the enforcement provisions the FSAI can implement, including enforcement orders and improvement notices and orders. The FSAI was established under that legislation and is a statutory, independent body whose job is to protect food hygiene and safety for consumers. It does that well. The specific issues the Deputy...

Food Labelling. (27 Jun 2006)

Brendan Smith: We appreciate the work and interest of the Tánaiste in that regard. People in general are concerned about labelling, as surveys have shown. The Minister has raised at European level the need for further advances in this area. We have made advances on beef and the regulations will be in place from 3 July. The Minister has also raised with the Commissioner for Health and Consumer Protection...

Food Labelling. (27 Jun 2006)

Brendan Smith: The Minister consistently raises substantial transformation at the Council of Ministers meeting and at meetings with the Agriculture Commissioner and with Commissioner Kyprianou as well. Yesterday a week ago she raised it at the most recent meeting of the Council of Ministers. It is of interest to the producer, the processor and the consumer. We have put forward our concerns on this issue...

Food Labelling. (27 Jun 2006)

Brendan Smith: The enforcement of food labelling regulations is centralised in the Food Safety Authority of Ireland which ensures that the appropriate controls are carried out by the relevant official agencies. In response to Deputy Upton, the FSAI stated that in a survey of 20 randomly selected Irish honeys sourced from various manufacturers four were found not to be Irish. The FSAI is working with the...

Farm Incomes. (27 Jun 2006)

Brendan Smith: The Teagasc national farm survey 2004 indicates that on 78% of holdings, the farmer and-or spouse had some source of off-farm income, be it from employment, pensions or social assistance. The survey indicates that 36% of farmers had an off-farm job while 22% of farmers' spouses had off-farm employment. The presence of off-farm employment was most common among cattle and sheep producers where...

Farm Incomes. (27 Jun 2006)

Brendan Smith: Average family farm income on 38% of farms is classified as derived from full-time farming. This measurement is based on labour input. I have met different farming groups and other people in rural areas and discussed off-farm income options for farmers over recent months. At regional food fora there has been particular interest in small-scale food production from small-scale farmers and...

Farm Incomes. (27 Jun 2006)

Brendan Smith: The Minister, Deputy Coughlan, has emphasised at every fora available to her, at the EU and the World Trade Organisation talks, the absolute necessity for the green box to be protected as regards direct payments. In 2005, €1.6 billion was paid out to the farming community in direct payments. It must be recognised that there was an overlap with some of the payments from the previous year...