Results 281-300 of 2,937 for speaker:Martin Heydon

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: That is correct.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: Yes, that may happen down the line.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: Many are registered. Golf courses and the like are professional. Ultimately the definition relates to commercial activity. If someone is growing a few spuds in the back garden, that is not a commercial activity.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: That is my understanding, if they are purchasing the fertiliser themselves.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: I will clarify that for the Senator and come back to him on it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: I will say again, there is a clear differentiation here in general terms between commercial activity and non-commercial activity. Therefore, somebody who goes into a chain of DIY stores and buys a small amount of fertiliser for their lawn will not have to register for this.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: Somebody who is growing a few carrots or spuds out the back and is putting a very small bag of fertiliser on them, is not commercial activity. A golf course is seen as commercial activity; green keepers are included. I will come back to the Senator and to the committee to clarify the exact point in terms of a GAA club.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: The Senator has raised a very valid point. As somebody who started out as a Deputy before pre-legislative scrutiny, the merit of this process I see is that we can tease through these issues and give absolute clarification before we get the legislative process underway properly. I will come back to the committee and clarify the specific point in relation to GAA clubs and soccer clubs, if the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: I accept the Senator's concerns and the points he has articulated very clearly. At the beginning of this process, there is a one-off opportunity or requirement of farmers to declare opening stock on their farm holding. The opening stock of those dairy farmers who had a high income and may have purchased some fertiliser at the back end of the year will be recorded in the beginning of the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: We are putting safeguards in place. In every process there are always ways in which people might try and get around it and that is the reason we will have an inspection regime and controls and measures in place to act as a deterrent. What is also really important about this process is that it is easy to use. We do not need to add layers of complexity and red tape for farmers. We have to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: I take on board the Chair's guffaw.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: The general principle of the system is that the reporting burdens are being reduced here and this system is about making life easier for farmers. It is to all of our benefit that we do this and have a better handle on how much fertiliser is spread here. We will definitely have a much clearer picture on that with this process in place than we have to date. Also, the Senator talked about...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: With the Chair's indulgence, I will bring in Mr. Massey on that point.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: Can I make one wrap-up point on that and take on board that sentiment felt strongly by farmers. I argue that on the fertiliser side of things, this will reduce the reporting burden on farmers, but also-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: Not only in relation to that point but on the earlier point we discussed in the first two and half hours of this meeting, there is the bigger picture here. It is not just about what is the most convenient for farmers today or tomorrow. It is about protecting this industry and future-proofing it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: Farmers keep records under the nitrates directive. They are used to that reporting requirement.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: Mr. Massey will answer that very valid point about derogation farmers.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: That is subjective. I have to re-iterate to Senator Lombard that the priority here has been to meet our regulatory requirements while also giving farmers the greatest choice possible and trying to minimise that impact on businesses that are in that space. It is a matter of trying to strike the right balance between all those different bits. Change is challenging for lots of different...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: We have received the opinion very recently. We are in the hands of the committee as to whether we finish tonight and the committee gives the go-ahead, pending the analysis of that decision. Obviously, there is time pressure here, not just for this part of the Bill, but also for the second part of the Bill, which we will discuss in time. Some farmers are dependent on eco schemes and other...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: General Scheme of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (11 Oct 2022)

Martin Heydon: That is a very specific point on which I might defer to my officials. Would the contractor be applying fertiliser in that specific space?