Written Answers Nos. 806-816
806. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of participants in the BEAM scheme; the average payment by county in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43599/21]
View answerThe Deputy will find attached the information as requested.
807. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of participants in the BEAM scheme for whom recoupment is being sought by county; the average and total amount by county in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43600/21]
View answerThe information requested by the Deputy is set out in the attached table.
808. Deputy Joe Carey asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his attention has been drawn to the delays in processing of data required for Horse Sport Ireland by a company (details supplied); the subsequent delays in the issuing of horse passports by Horse Sport Ireland and the detrimental effect this is having on the breeders that rely on the sales of young horses at the six-month-old stage; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43601/21]
View answerDNA typing is a fundamental part of the identification of Studbook horses and can be a delaying factor in the issue of passports when this data is not available. The issuing of passports is an operational matter for Horse Sport Ire
My officials have been in contact with Horse Sport Ireland on the matter. I am informed that the company providing DNA typing services to Horse Sport Ireland is experiencing technical difficulties and is looking expedite a solution as soon as possible. Both companies have been in contact on an ongoing basis resolve the issue as quickly as possible.
809. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of Bills prepared by his Department since 27 June 2020; the number and title of those Bills that included regulatory impact assessments; the title of the regulatory impact assessments that have been published by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43700/21]
View answerMy Department has prepared 2 Bills in the relevant time-frame. They are:
1. The Forestry (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2020 No. 15 of 2020, and
2. The Sea-Fisheries (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2021 (Bill 108 of 2021).
The Forestry (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2020 was emergency legislation and prepared without a Regulatory Impact Analysis (RIA). However, an extensive public consultation took place in the weeks leading up to the publication of the Bill.
The RIA for the Sea-Fisheries (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill was first published on the Department’s website in 2014. It was titled as follows: "Screening Regulatory Impact Assessment of the Proposal for a Bill to amend the Sea Fisheries and Maritime Jurisdiction Act 2006 to provide for Fixed Penalties for minor offences, a Points System for masters of fishing vessels for serious offences and Quota Management Policy".
810. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he has spoken formally with the United States Secretary of Agriculture to date in 2021. [43884/21]
View answerI did speak with Secretary Vilsack in April of 2021. We discussed strengthening ties between Ireland and the United States. We also covered areas of mutual interest including climate and meat access.
811. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will review the conditions in relation to improving fishing effort for boats under 10 m under the tie-up scheme being administered by BIM as there is no obligation on these boats to keep logbooks of fishing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43911/21]
View answerOn 3 September 2021, I announced the launch of a Brexit Temporary Fleet Tie-up Scheme to help mitigate the impacts of quota cuts on the fishing fleet arising from the Trade and Cooperation Agreement agreed in December between the European Union and the UK. The scheme delivers on a recommendation of the Seafood Sector Task Force in its June 2021 Interim Report. The scheme is targeted at white fish vessels in the Polyvalent and Beam Trawl segments. Eligible vessels may apply to tie-up at the quayside for a one-month period during October to December 2021 and receive a payment compensating for the lost fishing income. The vessel owners will in turn be required to distribute one third of that payment to crew.
As part of the State Aid approval for the scheme, the European Commission required that the scheme generally mirror the rules for temporary cessation schemes under the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund. In particular, we were obliged to limit eligibility to vessels that had engaged in fishing activities at sea for two consecutive years (either 2018/19 or 2019/20). It is not possible to disregard this rule.
Fishing vessels under 10 metres are not required to record their catch in EU logbooks and the scheme recognises this by instead allowing these vessels to demonstrate that they meet the rule concerning 120 days fishing activity through a combination of a self-declaration and the records of their landings recorded on the Sales Notes System maintained by the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority.
812. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when the funding allocated for piers and harbours under the EU Brexit fund will be allocated to local authorities; the criteria being used to assess these allocations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43917/21]
View answerResponsibility for the maintenance and development of Local Authority-owned harbours and piers rests with each individual Local Authority in the first instance and its parent Department, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage thereafter.
Nonetheless, as part of the Department’s 2021 Fishery Harbour and Coastal Infrastructure Development Programme, I approved an enhanced investment package of €4.2m to assist coastal Local Authorities in the repair and development of fishery and aquaculture linked marine infrastructure under their ownership.
In March 2021, I established a Seafood Sector Task Force comprised of stakeholders from our fisheries, aquaculture and seafood processing sectors, together with representatives of coastal community development groups, coastal local authorities, State enterprise development agencies and others.
The remit of this Task Force is to examine the implications arising from the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and the UK for the Irish Fishing industry and coastal communities particularly dependent upon it.
I have asked the Task Force to outline initiatives that could be taken to provide supports for development and restructuring so as to ensure a profitable and sustainable fishing fleet and to identify opportunities for jobs and economic activity in coastal communities dependent on fishing.
In July 2021, I received an Interim Report of this Task Force which made some limited recommendations pending its full report which I expect to receive in the Autumn. While the Interim Report did not feature any specific recommendations relating to local authority owned harbours and piers, I understand that the Task Force is discussing piers and harbours in the context of possible mitigation measures. I anticipate a Final Report from the Task Force later this year outlining its full recommendations.
813. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his attention has been drawn to the impact of proposed changes in the UK in dealing with Irish food imports with particular reference to a company (details supplied) in County Kildare with facilities in Longford and Naas; if any success has been achieved in dealing with the UK authorities in order to streamline access to an already well-established market for the products of the company; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43964/21]
View answerThe Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has been engaged in a wide range of activities to get ready, and to help industry get ready, for the new UK import requirements which, as the Deputy will be aware, have now been deferred into 2022. We will be continuing these activities to meet the newly announced UK timelines.
There has been extensive engagement with all stakeholders in the supply chain through trials, testing, information webinars and training sessions. The Department is also implementing an extensive additional staff resource plan to support the increased demand for export health certification, and IT systems and infrastructure have been upgraded across the country to support the provision of export health certification to businesses.
A key element of the Department's preparations has been the extensive engagement that has been undertaken by local veterinary supervisory teams with individual food business operators. This local engagement is, and has been, critical to allow businesses and the Department to refine business processes in order to support the provision of export health certification, and to align the demand for certification with available resources.
The Department has engaged with the company named as part of this process, and I understand that good progress has been made in putting in place the resources and refined business processes that will support this company's trade with the UK.
This task is challenging for all food business operators. It will require ongoing engagement, especially at local level, between Department veterinary supervisory teams and the management of these plants, as we work towards the new UK timelines I mentioned earlier.
More generally, the Department also continues to engage regularly with the UK’s Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to press for decisions and clarity on outstanding issues which will make the export certification process operate more efficiently, including on UK plans for Border Control Post infrastructure, and the procedures which will apply at British ports.
814. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the amount paid in late interest payments and penalty payments by his Department in each of the years 2017 to 2020 and to date in 2021 in respect of late payments being made to suppliers, service providers and contractors in tabular form; and the measures he has put in place and or is implementing to reduce late payment interest and penalty payments. [43997/21]
View answerLate interest and compensation payments in respect of all commercial transactions by the Department of Agriculture, Food & the Marine for the years 2017 to 2020 and from 1st January 2021 to 31st August 2021 are set out in the table below.
|
|
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
2020 |
1/1/2021 – 31/08/2021 |
|
Late Interest |
3,023 |
932 |
4,258 |
2,035 |
279 |
|
Compensation |
4,560 |
7,100 |
6,610 |
5,180 |
810 |
To promote compliance with prompt payment legislation, Government Departments are required to publish on their respective websites, their quarterly payment performance reports and the Department prompt payment reports are available at www.gov.ie/en/organisation-information/b37c5-freedom-of-information-foi/#prompt-payments-reports
The Department also publishes prompt payment information on it's Intranet each month highlighting the amount of late interest and compensation costs incurred. The relevant Divisions are contacted by the Accounts Division and informed of the amount of late interest incurred and are requested to supply an explanation as to why the invoice was presented late for payment. Divisions are reminded of prompt payment legislation and the Department’s efforts to met the requirements in this regard.
815. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the amount paid in late interest payments and penalty payments in each of the years 2017 to 2020 and to date in 2021 made by Greyhound Racing Ireland in respect of late payments being made to suppliers, service providers and contractors in tabular form; and the measures that the body has put in place or are implementing to reduce late payment interest and or penalty payments. [44018/21]
View answerRásaíocht Con Éireann (RCÉ) is a commercial state body, established under the Greyhound Industry Act, 1958 chiefly to control greyhound racing and to improve and develop the greyhound industry. RCÉ is a body corporate and a separate legal entity to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
The question raised by the Deputy is an operational matter for RCÉ and, therefore, the question has been referred to the body for direct reply.
816. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he plans to continue the supports for students of agricultural colleges arising as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic for the 2021-2022 academic year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44077/21]
View answerTo ensure parity with learner supports in the wider education sector, I instructed the Department to provide Teagasc with once off funding of over €150,000 to enable disadvantaged Teagasc learners purchase laptops and to provide financial assistance to full-time learners in the Agricultural Colleges for the 2020/2021 academic year.
The measures were in recognition of the unique challenges facing learners in 2020/2021. In adjusting to the challenges posed by COVID-19 we were conscious, at the time, of the need to minimise the risk of a ‘digital divide’ arising for disadvantaged learners moving to a blended learning environment. I understand from Teagasc that the lap-top scheme is being extended to 2021/2022 academic year as there is some equipment to hand.
Teagasc agricultural colleges have reopened with COVID -19 measures implemented for the safety of learners and staff. Course delivery across Teagasc programmes continues to utilise a hybrid model. Both theory and practical instruction to full-time students in colleges is mainly being delivered on a face to face basis. Adult education courses delivered from both Colleges and Regional Education Centres are utilising a greater proportion of online delivery in addition to face-to-face teaching and practicals. The approach being adopted in Teagasc is in line with developments elsewhere in the education sector.
