Results 1,861-1,880 of 23,915 for speaker:Charlie McConalogue

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: The appeals office uses the Chief State Solicitor's office and the Attorney General's office only for legal advice.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: The Bill, as drafted, is what is presented, but obviously it is at pre-legislative scrutiny stage and the final Bill is something we can reflect on further. One of the key objectives here is to ensure that as part of the review panel there is representation of people with practical experience of farming. That will certainly be the way I proceed to set the board up. As to how we reflect...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: Is that the number with practical-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: The number overall is five, including the director. The legislation also provides for regulations to be made to define further the makeup. It is something I will potentially be able to do in the regulations, that piece around the practical farming aspect. If it is not necessarily in the primary legislation, we will put it into the regulations. That is the key objective and output here....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: Three would have to be present for any decision.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: On somebody accompanying the person, we provide for that in the legislation. The person can represent themselves or can have somebody represent them on their behalf. I presume we mean both the appellant and the representative can be there at the same time.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: Basically, at the moment for an oral hearing, it states “An appellant may represent himself or herself or be represented by another person at the oral hearing of his or her appeal.” I take the Deputy’s point. That could well be read like an either-or as opposed to-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: That has always been allowed. Section 8(4) indicates “An appellant may represent himself or herself or be represented by another person at the oral hearing of his or her appeal.” The point after that states, “Where an appellant is represented by another person at the oral hearing of his or her appeal, the appeals officer hearing the appeal may examine the appellant, if...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: In some cases now they bring more than that two.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: If the situation were particularly tricky, the appellant might need more. We could leave it, though it could be said that-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: It is best to leave it a bit open-ended but make it clear that people can have additional representatives with them. The committee may want to flag that. I will reflect on it further but I would be happy to get the committee's sense of it as well.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: Yes, that would be good. In response to Deputy Mythen, force majeure is already built into the appeals system, so you can-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: I take the point the Chair is making, but it is a different point from saying a new force majeure would be considered at the review panel stage, at the very final point. When people get to that very final point, that review panel stage, they are appealing on the basis of a point of fact or a point of law. That point of fact could be, for example, that they do not believe that force majeure...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: I take the Deputy's point but I think that is covered, currently. In the case of a force majeure, where circumstances or facts have changed after the appeal is made, a person can seek an appeal to another appeals officer on the basis of a change of circumstance or facts.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: It is in the current system.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: No, because that is where the option is. What the Deputy described is provided for. For example, if an appeals officer makes a decision the appellant does not agree with, because his or her circumstances have changed further or because new evidence has come to light, a further appeal can be made to another appeals officer on the appeals board, or to the same appeals officer, with that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: A judicial review at the High Court is an ultimate option. It is a safeguard for all legal processes, basically. The High Court is the only place where a judicial review can be taken If an appellant chooses this option, it would be a judicial review of the process, rather than a further appeal on a fact as such. It would review whether the process was fair or not. We cannot prevent...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: Yes, it would. Those officials make decisions based on the force majeure criteria.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: I take the Cathaoirleach's point. As I have said, the key thing we want to ensure is that we have practical farming experience among the membership. On the committee's considerations, it was asked whether this means that farm organisations should get to make nominations. Does allowing farm organisations to nominate members make it more independent? The Cathaoirleach's view is that it may....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Feb 2024)

Charlie McConalogue: I agree with the Cathaoirleach.