The amendments for the Report Stage have been circulated.
In Committee on Finance. - Slaughter of Cattle and Sheep Bill, 1934—Report and Final Stages.
"Agreed: That the Report and Final Stages be taken now.
Dr. Ryan
I move amendment No. 1:—
To delete Section 11 (4) (a).
On the Committee Stage, on an appeal from Deputy Dillon, I kept this amendment over for further consideration. I find that what I said last night was perfectly true, that this right was never exercised under previous Acts passed since 1924. It is an unnecessary expense on the Department to keep a register for the public to inspect. Otherwise they need only keep a card index. Of course it does not prevent the citizen from getting any information he wants. He can get it by post at any time. It does prevent the citizen, however, from walking into the office and demanding to see the register.
Amendment put and agreed to.
Dr. Ryan
I move amendment No. 2:—
At the end of Section 12 to add a new sub-section as follows:—
(6) Where the Minister has cancelled under this section the registration of any premises, the Minister may at any time thereafter refuse, subject to the provisions of this Act, to register such premises in any register kept in pursuance of this part of this Act.
This also arose last night out of the case of a person removed from the register. On examination it was found that the Minister would be compelled to reregister a person because every person had a right to registration. Therefore, this amendment was found to be necessary.
Amendment put and agreed to.
Dr. Ryan
I move amendment No. 3:—
In Section 17 (7), to delete the words "or by leaving it with a person over the age of 16 years at the said registered slaughtering premises."
This was raised by Deputy Bennett —that is, the serving of a notice on a person over 16 years of age. We have removed that. We must now either serve the notice on the owner of the premises or by post.
Amendment put and agreed to.
Dr. Ryan
I move amendment No. 4:—
In Section 17 (7) to delete the word "registered" where it occurs in the expression "registered post."
That is to delete the word "registered."
Amendment put and agreed to.
Dr. Ryan
I move amendment No. 5:—
To add at the end of Section 19 a new sub-section as follows:—
(4) Every person who without lawful authority alters or defaces or permits the alteration or defacement of a mark imposed on or affixed to any cattle under this section or who without lawful authority imposes or affixes on or to any cattle a mark the same as a mark prescribed under this Part of this Act or so closely resembling any such mark as to be calculated to deceive shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding £25 or, at the discretion of the court, to imprisonment for any term not exceeding three months or to both such fine and such imprisonment.
This also arose in the course of the discussion last night. A person might alter, deface or counterfeit the mark which an inspector places on the cattle, or, in fact, might attempt to mark cattle which were not marked by an inspector. It would appear that the Bill does not cover that particular offence.
Twenty-five pounds is a very heavy penalty.
Amendment put and agreed to.
Dr. Ryan
I move amendment No. 6:—
In Section 20 (1) to delete paragraphs (c), (d), (e) and (f).
This amendment gave me a considerable amount of trouble last night after listening to Deputy Curran's speech. I have agreed to delete paragraphs (c), (d), (e) and (f), the effect being that it is no longer an offence for a person to sell a beast to a butcher, the butcher afterwards slaughtering it before the time.
Amendment put and agreed to.
Dr. Ryan
I move amendment No. 7:—
In Section 20 (2) to delete the words "sells, offers or exposes for sale, buys, or offers to buy."
That is consequential.
Amendment put and agreed to.
Dr. Ryan
I move amendment No. 8:—
In Section 28 (1) to delete the words "a particular animal" and substitute the words "the animals" and to delete the words "animal is" and substitute the words "animals are."
As the Bill stands, we have to give an export licence for every animal. This amendment will enable us to give a licence for ten, twenty, or fifty animals, as the case may be.
Amendment put and agreed to.
Dr. Ryan
I move amendment No. 9:—
In Section 28 (3) to delete the word "animal" and substitute the word "animals."
That is consequential.
Amendment put and agreed to.
Dr. Ryan
I move amendment No. 10:—
Before Section 32 (3) to insert a new sub-section as follows:—
The Civil Service Regulation Acts, 1924 and 1926, shall not apply to persons engaged or employed by the Minister under paragraph (c) of the next preceding sub-section of this section.
If the section were to stand as it is and I were to operate a factory and, amongst others, employ a civil servant, it appears that if I told the civil servant I did not want him any more it might happen that he would lose all his Civil Service rights. Under this amendment, if I dismiss a civil servant who would be operating a factory from that particular position he would still be a civil servant and go back to his former post.
In these circumstances there would be no post to go back to.
Amendment put and agreed to.
Question—"That the Bill, as amended, be received for final consideration"—put and agreed to.
Question proposed: "That the Bill do now pass."
We are opposing the passing of this Bill for many reasons, but outstanding are the formulæ adopted by the Minister in fixing the minimum price. From figures he has disclosed in the last stages in Committee he anticipates a consumption of 250,000 cows and cattle in the home market and he admits that the producer is going to lose, compared with the world market price, £4 10s. 0d. per beast, which is a loss to the producer on the home market of over £1,000,000. Then the Minister contemplates apparently giving the export licences to the traders instead of to the producers, and no provision is made in the Bill for fixing a minimum price at which these exporters are to buy the cattle. Finally, he does not even touch the real problem which he set out to deal with, namely, to find a market for our surplus fat stock. That still remains unsolved and in these circumstances I am opposing the Bill.
Question put.
The Dáil divided:—Tá, 48; Níl, 32.
Tá
- Bartley, Gerald.
- Beegan, Patrick.
- Blaney, Neal.
- Boland, Gerald.
- Brady, Brian.
- Browne, William Frazer.
- Concannon, Helena.
- Crowley, Fred, Hugh.
- Crowley, Timothy.
- Daly, Denis.
- Derrig, Thomas.
- De Valera, Eamon.
- Doherty, Hugh.
- Donnelly, Eamon.
- Flynn, Stephen.
- Fogarty, Andrew.
- Geoghegan, James.
- Gibbons, Seán.
- Hales, Thomas.
- Harris, Thomas.
- Hayes, Seán.
- Hogan, Patrick (Clare).
- Houlihan, Patrick.
- Keely, Séamus F.
- Kehoe, Patrick.
- Kelly, James Patrick.
- Kelly, Thomas.
- Keyes, Michael.
- Killilea, Mark.
- Kilroy, Michael.
- Lemass, Seán F.
- Little, Patrick John.
- Lynch, James B.
- MacEntee, Seán.
- Maguire, Ben.
- Moore, Séamus.
- Murphy, Patrick Stephen.
- O Ceallaigh, Seán T.
- O'Doherty, Joseph.
- O'Grady, Seán.
- O'Reilly, Matthew.
- Pearse, Margaret Mary.
- Rice, Edward.
- Ruttledge, Patrick Joseph.
- Ryan, James.
- Ryan, Martin.
- Sheridan, Michael.
- Smith, Patrick.
Níl
- Beckett, James Walter.
- Belton, Patrick.
- Bennett, George Cecil.
- Broderick, William Joseph.
- Burke, James Michael.
- Coburn, James.
- Cosgrave, William T.
- Costello, John Aloysius.
- Curran, Richard.
- Desmond, William.
- Dillon, James M.
- Doyle, Peadar S.
- Fagan, Charles.
- Finlay, John.
- Fitzgerald-Kenney, James.
- Haslett, Alexander.
- Keating, John.
- Lynch, Finian.
- McFadden, Michael Og.
- McGovern, Patrick.
- Morrisroe, James.
- Morrissey, Daniel.
- Mulcahy, Richard.
- Nally, Martin.
- O'Higgins, Thomas Francis.
- O'Leary, Daniel.
- O'Mahony, The.
- O'Neill, Eamonn.
- Redmond, Bridget Mary.
- Rice, Vincent.
- Rogers, Patrick James.
- Rowlette, Robert James.
Tellers:—Tá: Deputies Little and Smith; Níl: Deputies Doyle and Bennett.
Question declared carried.