Vol. 537 No. 5
235 Mr. N. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development if his attention has been drawn to the delays being incurred in issuing cattle movement permits in respect of twin calves where the herdowner is requested to confirm that the calves in question are twins, even though they have already been registered. [16903/01]
Under procedures introduced this year for the registration of twin births, additional verification is required in certain circumstances. In particular, this additional verification requires herdowners to confirm the details in relation to the second set of twins in his-her herd and district veterinary office authorisation to proceed with the registration and the issue of passports when the incidence of twins in a herd exceeds certain ratios. The new controls were introduced to provide additional guarantees regarding the integrity of the animal identification and tracing system.
