Billy Kelleher
Question:209. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health the cost of abolishing statutory public inpatient charges; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25267/17]
View answerHospital Charges
Questions (209)
Written answers
The Health (Amendment) Act 2013 governs the area of Statutory In-Patient Charges (SIC). The current SIC for public patients for overnight and day in-patient services is €80 per day up to a maximum of €800 in one year.
I have asked the HSE to reply directly to the Deputy with the latest figures regarding the amount of income generated by this charge in 2016.
Health Promotion
Questions (210)
Billy Kelleher
Question:210. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health if his Department and Healthy Ireland will implement the WHO international code of marketing of breast milk substitutes in full (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25268/17]
View answerWritten answers
My Department and the Health Service Executive (HSE) implement the World Health Organisation International Code of Marketing of Breast milk Substitutes. The Infant and Follow on Formulae regulations are enforced by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland in partnership with the HSE Environmental Health Officers.
A key policy priority for Irish Government and the Irish health service is to increase the proportion of people who are healthy at all stages of life through the implementation of the Healthy Ireland Framework, Healthy Ireland – A Framework for Improved Health and Wellbeing 2013-2025 (Department of Health, 2013).
This involves addressing risk factors and promoting protective factors at every stage of life, including the period from the pre-natal stage and through childhood, to support health and wellbeing.
The HSE Healthy Ireland in the Health Services National Implementation Plan 2015 – 2017 has prioritised breastfeeding through the inclusion of key actions under the Policy Priority Programme Healthy Childhood.
Last year, the HSE published its plan to improve breastfeeding rates. Breastfeeding in a Healthy Ireland Health Service Breastfeeding Action Plan 2016 – 2021 sets out the priority areas to be addressed over the next 5 years to support more mothers in Ireland to breastfeed and to contribute to increases in breastfeeding rates. The HSE Action Plan includes a target of an annual 2% increase in breastfeeding duration rates between 2016 and 2021, exclusive and not exclusive.
Aquaculture Licence Applications
Questions (211)
Charlie McConalogue
Question:211. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of an application for an aquaculture licence by a person (details supplied) in County Donegal. [25073/17]
View answerWritten answers
My Department’s records indicate that an incomplete application for an Aquaculture Licence was received by my Department from the person referred to by the Deputy in November 2016. As the application form was incomplete and as the necessary supporting documents were also missing the application form was returned to the applicant for completion.
A completed application form, together with the necessary supporting documentation, has not yet been received by my Department.
GLAS Payments
Questions (212)
Charlie McConalogue
Question:212. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a GLAS payment will issue to a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25082/17]
View answerWritten answers
The person named was approved into GLAS 1 with a contract commencement date of 1st October 2015 and has been paid in full in respect of the 2015 scheme year.
During the 2016 prepayment checking process issues were identified with the Low input permanent pastures action. Department officials are actively working to resolve these issues with a view to further processing the application for payment at the earliest opportunity.
TAMS Payments
Questions (213)
Michael Healy-Rae
Question:213. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of a grant payment for a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25088/17]
View answerWritten answers
The person named was approved, carried out work and submitted a payment claim under the Young Farmer's Capital Investment Scheme of TAMS II. Under the provisions of the scheme a reduction must be applied before payment. The payment claim will be processed as quickly as possible.
GLAS Payments
Questions (214)
Brendan Griffin
Question:214. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a GLAS payment will issue to a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25094/17]
View answerWritten answers
The person named was approved into GLAS 1 with a contract commencement date of 1 October 2015 and has been paid in full in respect of the 2015 scheme year.
During the 2016 prepayment checking process issues were identified with the Commonage action. Department officials have resolved these issues and the 85% payment for 2016 is currently being processed.
TAMS Payments
Questions (215)
Brendan Griffin
Question:215. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a TAMS grant payment will issue to a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25098/17]
View answerWritten answers
The person named was approved, carried out work and submitted a payment claim under the Dairy Equipment Scheme of TAMS II. Under the provisions of the scheme a reduction must be applied before payment. The payment claim will be processed as quickly as possible.
TAMS Payments
Questions (216)
Brendan Griffin
Question:216. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a TAMS 2 grant payment will issue to a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25100/17]
View answerWritten answers
The person named was approved, carried out work and submitted a payment claim under the Young Farmer Scheme of TAMS II. Under the provisions of the scheme a reduction must be applied before payment. The payment claim is being processed as quickly as possible.
TAMS Payments
Questions (217)
Brendan Griffin
Question:217. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a TAMS grant payment will issue to a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25102/17]
View answerWritten answers
The person named was approved, carried out work and submitted a payment claim under the Dairy Equipment Scheme of TAMS II. Under the provisions of the scheme a reduction must be applied before payment. The payment claim is being processed as quickly as possible.
Agri-Environment Options Scheme Payments
Questions (218)
Michael Healy-Rae
Question:218. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of an AEOS payment for a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25103/17]
View answerWritten answers
The person named commenced their AEOS 2 contract on 1 September 2011. Payment issued in respect of the 2011-2015 Scheme years.
Under the EU Regulations governing the Scheme and other area-based payment schemes, a comprehensive administrative check, including cross-checks with the Land Parcel Identification System must take place. As 2016 is the final scheme year of payment for the person-named, re-checks on payments made for all scheme years must be completed before final payments can be processed. This process is on-going and payments are issuing on a weekly basis in cases where the final checks has been successfully completed.
Control of Horses
Questions (219)
Seán Fleming
Question:219. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the local authorities which have been in discussions with his Department regarding the implementation of by-laws by local authorities in respect of the control of horses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25104/17]
View answerWritten answers
The City and County Managers Association representing the Local Authorities made a submission on the by-law issue as part of the Review into the operation of the Control of Horses Act 1996.
They stated in this that replacing by-laws with a single piece of national legislation would be appropriate and might allow the Control of Horses Act to operate more efficiently. This Review has now been completed and legislative change will be considered in due course.
GLAS Applications
Questions (220)
Brendan Griffin
Question:220. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if a decision to reject a GLAS application by a person (details supplied) in County Kerry will be reviewed in view of the correspondence sent to his Department; if he will rectify the error; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25114/17]
View answerWritten answers
The person named was approved into GLAS with a contract commencement date of 1 October 2015 and has been paid in full for the 2015 scheme year.
During the 2016 prepayment checking process an issue presented on the computerised crosscheck of Department databases concerning the Wild Bird Cover action and the declaration made on the 2016 BPS application in respect to this land parcel. Department officials are reviewing the issue in light of the additional correspondence and this review is expected to be completed shortly.
GLAS Data
Questions (221)
Charlie McConalogue
Question:221. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of persons in receipt of GLAS 1 and GLAS 2 who have received 85% of their total 2016 payment by county in tabular form; the number of persons who have passed all payment approval checks and are awaiting their 2016 payment; the number of GLAS recipients who have yet to receive payment by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25154/17]
View answerWritten answers
The information requested is set out in the following table on a county by county basis for GLAS 1 and GLAS 2 applicants who have received a payment to date or will be paid in the next payment run by the Department in the coming days. In total this represents just under 95% of all applications received.
In addition there are just over 1,000 applicants from whom further documentation is awaited before their application can be considered further. The Department has notified these applicants of the documentation which is required and it is now a matter for these applicants to submit the required information if they wish to proceed.
This leaves 1,100 applicants whose cases are being reviewed by the Department and every effort is being made to advance these as quickly as possible.
|
County |
No. of applicants paid to date |
No. of applicants cleared for payment |
|
Carlow |
379 |
4 |
|
Cavan |
1284 |
8 |
|
Clare |
2198 |
15 |
|
Cork |
2955 |
29 |
|
Donegal |
2803 |
29 |
|
Dublin |
71 |
0 |
|
Galway |
4057 |
59 |
|
Kerry |
2520 |
25 |
|
Kildare |
300 |
3 |
|
Kilkenny |
601 |
8 |
|
Laois |
531 |
6 |
|
Leitrim |
1365 |
8 |
|
Limerick |
1285 |
10 |
|
Longford |
820 |
5 |
|
Louth |
206 |
2 |
|
Mayo |
3569 |
33 |
|
Meath |
578 |
5 |
|
Monaghan |
680 |
12 |
|
Offaly |
712 |
6 |
|
Roscommon |
1978 |
20 |
|
Sligo |
1253 |
4 |
|
Tipperary |
1530 |
18 |
|
Waterford |
436 |
7 |
|
Westmeath |
856 |
14 |
|
Wexford |
907 |
8 |
|
Wicklow |
442 |
5 |
|
Total |
34316 |
343 |
Agri-Environment Options Scheme Data
Questions (222)
Charlie McConalogue
Question:222. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of persons who applied for AEOS that have received their total 2016 payment by county in tabular form; the number of persons who have passed all payment approval checks and are awaiting their 2016 payment; the number of AEOS recipients who have yet to receive payment by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25155/17]
View answerWritten answers
Under the EU Regulations governing the Scheme and other area-based payment schemes, a comprehensive administrative check, including cross-checks with the Land Parcel Identification System must take place before payments are made. As 2016 is the final year for AEOS 2 participants re-checks on payments made for all scheme years must be completed before final payment can be processed. This process is on-going and payments are made on a weekly basis as cases are finalised.
|
County |
Totals |
Paid |
Awaiting Processing |
|
Carlow |
49 |
44 |
5 |
|
Cavan |
244 |
212 |
32 |
|
Clare |
556 |
488 |
68 |
|
Cork |
428 |
368 |
60 |
|
Donegal |
1360 |
1,196 |
164 |
|
Dublin |
9 |
9 |
0 |
|
Galway |
1245 |
1,098 |
147 |
|
Kerry |
568 |
492 |
76 |
|
Kildare |
39 |
34 |
5 |
|
Kilkenny |
109 |
95 |
14 |
|
Laois |
80 |
63 |
17 |
|
Leitrim |
430 |
382 |
48 |
|
Limerick |
224 |
183 |
41 |
|
Longford |
89 |
75 |
14 |
|
Louth |
41 |
33 |
8 |
|
Mayo |
1399 |
1,275 |
124 |
|
Meath |
83 |
74 |
9 |
|
Monaghan |
151 |
120 |
31 |
|
Offaly |
110 |
100 |
10 |
|
Roscommon |
478 |
432 |
46 |
|
Sligo |
335 |
298 |
37 |
|
Tipperary |
245 |
193 |
52 |
|
Waterford |
82 |
72 |
10 |
|
Westmeath |
122 |
94 |
28 |
|
Wexford |
84 |
57 |
27 |
|
Wicklow |
80 |
67 |
13 |
|
Totals |
8640 |
7,554 |
1086 |
Questions Nos. 223 and 224 withdrawn.
Teagasc Research
Questions (225)
Charlie McConalogue
Question:225. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his views on the recent report by Teagasc, Competitiveness of Irish Agriculture. [25158/17]
View answerWritten answers
My Department has considered the report published by Teagasc which provides a baseline analysis of the competitiveness of the Irish agricultural sector during the period 2005-2015, and against which future developments may be measured.
Ireland’s competitive position within the EU across all the dairy, beef, sheep and cereal sectors was positive for the period 2009-2013 when measuring cash costs as a percentage of total output (including allocation of decoupled payments). Irish dairy and cereal producers also had lower cash costs as a percentage of market based output, relative to the averages of all countries examined.
My Department continues to engage with stakeholders to address competitiveness challenges at farm and processing level, particularly through the Food Wise implementation process. Competitiveness is one of the key themes of the Food Wise strategy, which includes detailed recommendations aimed at building on Ireland's comparative advantages in terms of our sustainable, grass-fed production system, our positive business environment, our reputation in science-based innovation and product development and access to a young well-educated population.
Disadvantaged Areas Scheme
Questions (226)
Charlie McConalogue
Question:226. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will provide a map indicating the areas classified and the various designations of mountain, more severely and less severely handicapped areas, for each county currently in the ANC scheme. [25159/17]
View answerWritten answers
Disadvantaged agricultural area was first introduced in Ireland in 1975 and was based on a range of socio-economic factors. At present, over 5 million hectares are designated as disadvantaged under the scheme. An official from my Department has forwarded a copy of the current map of designated land directly to the Deputy.
Areas of Natural Constraint Scheme Funding
Questions (227)
Charlie McConalogue
Question:227. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of the Government's commitment to increase the funding allocation for ANCs for the 2018 scheme. [25160/17]
View answerWritten answers
The Programme for a Partnership Government sets out the commitment to increase the budget for the Areas of Natural Constraint (ANC) Scheme by €25m in Budget 2018. This commitment will form part of the Budget 2018 discussions, in parallel to the ongoing redesign of the scheme required by EU regulations.
Rural Development Programme
Questions (228)
Charlie McConalogue
Question:228. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his plans to make a proposal to amend aspects of the RDP as part of the annual amendment. [25161/17]
View answerWritten answers
I am currently considering plans to submit minor changes to the Rural Development Programme 2014-2020 as part of the annual amendment process. These proposed changes are minor technical amendments to certain existing schemes under the RDP. My Department will in any case be consulting with stakeholders here through the RDP Monitoring Committee in advance of the formal submission of these proposed amendments to the European Commission.
Brexit Issues
Questions (229)
Charlie McConalogue
Question:229. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of full and part-time staff respectively hired since 1 January 2017 to work directly on Brexit related issues on a Department-wide basis and in each State agency under his auspices in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25162/17]
View answerWritten answers
Following the UK referendum in June 2016, my Department established a dedicated Brexit and Coordination Trade Division which is currently comprised of 4 experienced staff. The Division co-ordinates the ongoing analysis, consultation and engagement activities being undertaken by a large number of administrative, technical and veterinary staff, through an internal Brexit Response Committee comprised of 16 people drawn from the wide range of Divisions affected by Brexit (including, for example, Meat and Milk Policy, Animal Health and Welfare, Food Industry Development, Economics and Planning, and Seafood Policy and Development). Of course, Brexit also occupies a considerable amount of my own time and that of Minister of State Doyle, as well as the Secretary General and other senior officials in the Department. The Brexit Coordination Division also feeds into the whole-of-Government co-ordination being undertaken by the Department of the Taoiseach. A dedicated Market Access Unit has also been established within the Meat and Milk Policy Division with 3 staff. Staffing requirements for Brexit associated functions are constantly under review and my Department is currently in the process of recruiting/assigning additional resources to a number of areas including the Brexit Division, the fisheries area and to functions associated with product certification to support trade. To date in 2017, my Department has hired 92 full time staff to work on a variety of issues including Brexit although, in the main Brexit issues are being dealt with by experienced DAFM staff.
Staff hires within State agencies under my Department's auspices are a matter for the State Bodies themselves once they remain within their budget set in their Delegated Sanction.
Brexit Issues
Questions (230)
Charlie McConalogue
Question:230. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the level of Brexit funding specifically allocated to each such agency in budget 2017 on a Department-wide basis and in each State agency under his auspices in tabular form; the amount of this Brexit funding that has been expended to date in each State agency; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25163/17]
View answerWritten answers
The 2017 budget for Bord Bia, the State Agency responsible for marketing and promotion of agri food and drink, is almost €61m. Bord Bia's activities in this area are all directly relevant to expanding market penetration and diversifying outlets for Irish food and drink against the background of Brexit. This budget includes an additional €2 million for Bord Bia to expand its programmes and activities in response to Brexit. Some €433,894 of this amount was spent in the period January to April.
My department will also be resourcing a market profiling exercise to be carried out by Bord Bia in 2017. This will be an invaluable tool for companies wishing to export food and drink and to my Department and its agencies in the context of prioritising their market access and development activities.
I am keeping the Department's response in relation to Brexit, including resource allocations, under close review as the negotiations proceed.