Results 181-200 of 17,665 for speaker:Brendan Smith

Farm Household Incomes. (17 May 2006)

Brendan Smith: I thank Deputy Crawford for raising this issue and welcome the opportunity to outline the facts. By any measure, 2005 was an exceptional year for the farming sector with the introduction of the single payment scheme. Aggregate farm income reached a record level of €2,765 million. This was a 24% increase on 2004, reflecting a once-off overlap in direct payments, as farmers received over €1...

Animal Diseases. (18 May 2006)

Brendan Smith: As a member of the EU and the World Trade Organisation, Ireland is in a position to avail of opportunities for trade that are essential for the development of our open economy. Membership of these organisations also brings reciprocal trade obligations. All imports must come from third countries or areas of third countries that have been approved by the EU authorities for export to the EU. In...

Animal Diseases. (18 May 2006)

Brendan Smith: This issue has been raised by Deputy Naughten, Deputy Upton and Members on all sides of the House and I did not need to read a report in any publication——

Animal Diseases. (18 May 2006)

Brendan Smith: ——to have concerns on the matter.

Animal Diseases. (18 May 2006)

Brendan Smith: He obviously was not listening.

Animal Diseases. (18 May 2006)

Brendan Smith: I said, as I did when Deputy Upton asked a similar question, that the Minister for Agriculture and Food, Deputy Coughlan, had consistently raised this issue at meetings of the EU Council of Ministers. It will arise again in the context of the WTO negotiations and deliberations at the EU Council of Ministers next Monday. There will be a further European audit and a further FVO inspection...

Genetically Modified Organisms. (18 May 2006)

Brendan Smith: I am well aware of the degree of opposition by some members of the public to the cultivation and use of GM crops here and of concerns about those crops from both a health and an environmental perspective. It has been for these very reasons that the European Union has adopted a series of legislative measures in recent years that ensure the most stringent conditions are in place in the...

Genetically Modified Organisms. (18 May 2006)

Brendan Smith: If we get a chance. I want to emphasise that we will continue to adopt our precautionary approach in this area. Decisions have not yet been made on co-existence. GM co-existence is the one area where subsidiarity is permitted within the GMO regulatory framework. Co-existence refers to the ability of farmers to make a practical choice between conventional, organic and GM crop production. EU...

Noxious Weeds. (18 May 2006)

Brendan Smith: The Noxious Weeds Act 1936 provides for the control of the spread of the following six noxious weeds: thistle, ragwort, dock, common barbery, male wild hop plant and wild oat. Under the Act, it is an offence not to prevent the spread of these noxious weeds. The owner, occupier, user or manager of lands on which these weeds are growing is liable, upon conviction, to be fined. In the case of...

Noxious Weeds. (18 May 2006)

Brendan Smith: We will review the legislation and we will take the current issues into account from both a farming and environmental point of view.

Noxious Weeds. (18 May 2006)

Brendan Smith: The notices that were issued were followed up by officials calling with the relevant people to ensure the necessary conditions had been complied with. We are writing to all local authorities again to remind them of their obligations. I do not know if the prosecutions involved individuals, local authorities or statutory bodies. However, I will take account of what Deputy Sargent and Deputy...

Noxious Weeds. (18 May 2006)

Brendan Smith: We are communicating with the national parks and wildlife service through the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government about this issue.

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...

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...