Billy Kelleher
Question:227. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health the cost in 2017 of a €1 reduction in prescription charges. [19038/16]
View answerPrescriptions Charges
Questions (227, 228)
Billy Kelleher
Question:228. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health the cost in 2017 of a €10 reduction in the drug threshold. [19039/16]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 227 and 228 together.
I intend to consider these matters in the context of the commitments in the Programme for Partnership Government to significantly reduce the cost of medicines, having regard to the funding available to facilitate such measures. Detailed costings will be required as part of this process, in order to establish as accurately as possible the expected costs to the Exchequer.
Under the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013, the HSE has statutory responsibility for the administration of the primary care schemes, therefore these matters have been referred to the HSE for attention and direct reply to the Deputy.
If the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days, please contact my Private Office and they will follow up these matters with them.
Hospital Appointments Status
Questions (229)
Timmy Dooley
Question:229. Deputy Timmy Dooley asked the Minister for Health when an appointment will be scheduled for a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19047/16]
View answerWritten answers
Under the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual.
The National Waiting List Management Policy, A standardised approach to managing scheduled care treatment for in-patient, day case and planned procedures, January 2014, has been developed to ensure that all administrative, managerial and clinical staff follow an agreed national minimum standard for the management and administration of waiting lists for scheduled care. This policy, which has been adopted by the HSE, sets out the processes that hospitals are to implement to manage waiting lists.
In relation to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly. If he has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.
Hospital Consultant Recruitment
Questions (230)
Willie Penrose
Question:230. Deputy Willie Penrose asked the Minister for Health the steps he will take to secure a pancreatic surgeon to replace the former surgeon who was involved in this vital area and if such an appointment is imminent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19048/16]
View answerWritten answers
I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on this matter. If he has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.
Departmental Funding
Questions (231)
Niall Collins
Question:231. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if funding is available to farmers who wish to construct an underpass for cattle; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18832/16]
View answerWritten answers
The construction of underpasses is not available under the TAMS II suite of measures. I have no plans to introduce this measure at this time.
Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme
Questions (232)
Michael Healy-Rae
Question:232. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of an application by a person (details supplied) under the targeted agricultural modernisation scheme 2; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18833/16]
View answerWritten answers
The person concerned is an applicant under the TAMS II Animal Welfare, Safety and Nutrient Storage Scheme. An application under the Scheme was received on 21 June 2016 and it is expected that processing of these applications will commence shortly.
GLAS Applications
Questions (233)
Charlie McConalogue
Question:233. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when he will issue a payment to a person (details supplied) under tranche 1 of the green low-carbon agri-environment scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18854/16]
View answerWritten answers
An application under Tranche 1 of GLAS was received in my Department on the 13 May 2015 and the person named was approved into the GLAS 1 with effect from 1 October 2015. There are a number of applications, including that of the person named, remaining which have not passed all of the Department’s pre-payment validation checks for the 2015 part-year payment. The Department is continuing to investigate these issues including the correction of any IT or data issues with a view to all these remaining cases meeting the payment validation checks so that they will be paid the full amount of their 2015 part-year payment at the same time the 2015 GLAS balancing payment is due to issue.
Basic Payment Scheme Appeals
Questions (234)
Michael Healy-Rae
Question:234. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of an appeal by a person (details supplied) for a farm payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18920/16]
View answerWritten answers
The person named submitted an application under the ‘new entrant’ category of the 2015 National Reserve. This application was not successful as the applicant was deemed to have exceeded the off farm income threshold of €40,000. The applicant was notified in writing of this decision and was offered the opportunity to submit an appeal. My Department received an appeal from the person named in relation to his National Reserve application. Following consideration of this appeal by my Department based on the information set out by the applicant, the original decision was upheld. The person named was notified of this decision in writing and was offered the opportunity to submit a further appeal to the independent Basic Payment Scheme appeals committee.
TAMS Applications
Questions (235)
Éamon Ó Cuív
Question:235. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason for the delay in approving targeted agricultural modernisation scheme applications under tranche 2 for the low emission slurry spreading scheme; when it is expected these applications will be approved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18921/16]
View answerWritten answers
263 applications were received under the Low Emission Slurry Scheme for Tranche 2. Approximately 125 will be pass e d to the Local Offices for further processing early next week. The remainder of the eligible applications will follow shortly after.
Agriculture Industry
Questions (236)
Éamon Ó Cuív
Question:236. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his views on the possible withdrawal of approval for glyphosate by the European Union; if he supported this in the European Union Council of Agriculture Ministers; if the decision taken by the EU was in line with the position adopted by Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18922/16]
View answerWritten answers
The initial Commission proposals for the approval of glyphosate were discussed by Member State representatives at meetings of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed on a number of occasions but a vote was not taken. Following a series of further EU Commission proposals and discussions with Member States that did not achieve a qualified majority, it remained open to the Commission to adopt its own proposal, therefore extending the current approval of glyphosate until the Committee for Risk Assessment of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has completed its work in assessing its effects.
Accordingly, the European Commission adopted on 29 June a maximum 18-month extension - from 1 July 2016 - to the license for glyphosate to allow ECHA to complete its assessment.
Ireland has supported the Commission proposals for the renewal of approval of glyphosate.
Organic Farming Scheme Eligibility
Questions (237)
Seán Fleming
Question:237. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason some organic farmers cannot receive payments under various categories under the green low-carbon agri-environment scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18941/16]
View answerWritten answers
All EU Member States are required in the administration of their Rural Development Programmes to protect against double payment under different schemes for similar farmer commitments. Organic farmers who are also in the GLAS scheme and have opted for t he Farmland Bird, Low Input Permanent Pasture, Traditional Hay Meadow and Wild Bird Cover GLAS actions must adhere to the GLAS farming prescription for these actions irrespective of their farming system and therefore payment under both schemes cannot be justified.
Organic production is a requirement of the Organic Farming Scheme and as no agricultural production is permitted in GLAS on areas selected for The Environmental Management of Fallow Land, Planting a Grove of Native Trees and Riparian Margins GLAS actions, the question of organic payment therefore does not arise in these cases.
Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme
Questions (238)
Seán Fleming
Question:238. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the information technology system that was put in place to deal with the targeted agricultural modernisation scheme; if he is fully satisfied it is operating to highly efficient standards; if there is a need for improvements in the system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18942/16]
View answerWritten answers
I am satisfied that the IT functionality put in place to administer TAMS II is operating to highly efficient standards. The additional functionality to allow payment claims to be submitted online is being finalised within my Department and it is anticipated that it will be available next month. Payments will follow for approved payment claims.