Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 July 2020
530. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his plans with to enact unfair trading practices legislation as per EU Directive 2019/633 of the European Parliament; if he plans to implement additional measures in line with the flexibility provided for in the directive; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17167/20]
View answerThe Programme for Government includes a commitment to the establishment of a new authority to be called the National Food Ombudsman to enforce the provisions of Directive (EU) No. 2019/633 Unfair Trading Practices (UTP Directive), which must be transposed into Irish law by 1 May 2021. Any proposed measures that extend beyond the minimum harmonisation requirements of the UTP Directive would require primary legislation.
My Department has been engaged in preparations, in consultation with the Department of Business Enterprise and Innovation for the transposition into national legislation of the Directive by the deadline. The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC), under the aegis of the Department of Business Enterprise and Innovation, is the enforcement authority for S.I. No. 35/2016 (Groceries Goods Undertakings Regulations, 2016). The legal and operational matters associated with the transposition of the UTP Directive and the associated Programme for Government committment are currently being assessed.
