Tuesday, 8 Feb 2022

Written Answers Nos. 831-850

Proposed Legislation

Questions (831)

Catherine Murphy

Question:

831. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will bring forward a fishery harbour centres (amendment) Bill. [6202/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

The Fishery Harbour Centres Act 1968 provides for the establishment of State-owned Fishery Harbour Centres (FHCs) as locations in which to promote and develop sea fishing activities. Since the introduction of the Act, six FHCs have been established in Castletownbere, Dingle, Dunmore East, Howth, Killybegs and Ros an Mhíl. Overall responsibility for their management and operation rests with my Department. At the end of 2019, the six FHCs were valued at €456m. In 2020, just under 90% of all fish landed into Ireland arrived at the FHCs.

In addition to the fisheries and seafood production industries, the FHCs are accommodating increasing amounts of diverse commercial business including commercial cargo traffic, restaurants and other leisure, tourism and social activities.

The Act has been amended on a number of occasions since its introduction. A review of the Act in its entirety is now being commenced by my Department and is expected to encompass an appropriate consultation process. The development of any Bill would follow on from these steps.

Official Travel

Questions (832)

Catherine Murphy

Question:

832. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will be travelling abroad for St. Patrick’s week 2022 on official visits; and if so, the location he is scheduled to visit. [6226/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

The Government is in the process of finalising the programme to mark St Patrick’s Day around the world. This will include a programme of visits by Ministers that will be approved by the Government early this month, and which will be made public immediately afterwards.

Third Level Education

Questions (833)

Verona Murphy

Question:

833. Deputy Verona Murphy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department informed third-level education providers of forestry in Ireland that their graduates are not capable of completing habitat surveys on existing forest sites and on sites proposed for afforestation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6546/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

The Department has ongoing contact with the two colleges in Ireland, UCD and WIT, that provide forestry degree programmes for students in Ireland. I understand an introduction to ecology forms part of both courses.

It is important to note that a qualified forester will have a different skillset than a qualified ecologist. It is very important that Registered Foresters are at a basic level able to identify the range of habitat types that often present themselves for afforestation. In this respect ongoing habitat training is very important for registered foresters and DAFM has in the past carried out such training for Registered Foresters and DAFM intend carrying out similar training this year.

While ecologists are best placed and qualified to carry out ecology reports the Department is examining ways of using the skillset of registered foresters bolstered by additional training to assist in gathering ecology information from sites that may reduce some of the requirement for specialist ecologist input.

The Department is confident that the two colleges involved in forestry degree programmes are aware of the skills and expertise required by Registered Foresters in applying for forestry licences.

Departmental Staff

Questions (834)

Verona Murphy

Question:

834. Deputy Verona Murphy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of staff with forestry qualifications and the number of staff including contracted in personnel with ecology qualifications in 2021 and to date in 2022; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6547/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

My Department employs 58 forestry inspectors and 27 FTE ecologists including contractors.

Agriculture Schemes

Questions (835)

Éamon Ó Cuív

Question:

835. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when grant aid under the TAMS II scheme will issue to a farmer (details supplied) in County Galway; the reason for the delay in issuing this grant; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6563/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

The person named submitted an application under the Young Farmers Capital Investment Scheme of TAMS II on 10th January 2020. The application was approved. An application for payment was submitted on 2nd September 2021 when the approved works were completed. There were some queries with the payment application which have now been resolved and the application has now been approved for payment.

Horticulture Sector

Questions (836)

Matt Carthy

Question:

836. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No. 835 of 1 February 2022, if he or his colleagues in have had engagements with Bord na Móna with regard to provision of access to extraction equipment or mixing plant to the commercial peat extraction for horticultural use sector in the State; the timeline for implementing same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6657/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

My Department along with the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications met with Bord na Mona on 10th December last year. The meeting discussed how Bord na Móna could assist in alleviating the current situation that the Irish horticultural industry find itself in with regard to the supply of peat including access to Bord na Móna’s mixing plant and equipment.

Bord na Móna indicated a willingness to assist in the process. However, Bord na Móna also confirmed that it would not recommence peat harvesting and would not divest lands for private abstraction. Bord na Móna indicated availability of approximately 2000 tons of horticultural grade peat and potentially significantly higher volume of hobby grade peat which may or may not be deemed suitable for the horticulture industry.

Horse Racing Industry

Questions (837)

Matt Carthy

Question:

837. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No. 833 of 1 February 2022, the terms of reference of the Irish Horse Racing Regulatory Board commissioned audit of anti-doping procedures in Irish racing further to the report of the Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine on Horse Racing in Ireland; the intended timeline to completion and publication; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6658/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) is a commercial state body established under the Horse and Greyhound Act, 2001.

The Horse Racing Ireland Act, 2016 provides that HRI is responsible for the overall administration, governance, development and promotion of the Irish horse racing industry for guaranteeing funding to the Racing Regulatory Board to carry out its functions through an integrity services budget which is agreed annually. The Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) is the regulatory body for all horseracing in Ireland.

The IHRB operates independently of my Department in the exercise of their regulatory functions.

However, I am advised that Dr. Craig Suann began his work on the Equine Anti-Doping Audit of the IHRB last month.

As per the IHRB’s recently published Equine Anti-Doping Report, Dr. Suann will audit the IHRB’s Equine Anti-Doping plans, policies and procedures as they relate to the report issued last year by the Joint Oireachtas Committee and also the IHRB’s Strategic Plan 2019-2023.

He will assess what has been achieved so far and what is outstanding with recommendations on how to achieve these objectives as a priority. The IHRB’s Equine-Anti Doping strategy will be examined in the context of strategies and best practices employed by other racing regulators.

The findings of Dr. Suann’s report will be published by the IHRB in early Q2 of this year.

Agriculture Industry

Questions (838)

Matt Carthy

Question:

838. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No. 841 of 1 February 2022, the circumstances under which potato seed may be imported into the State without the State from which it was imported being specified; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6659/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

Ireland has a high grade seed status and has additional controls in place including a requirement for pre-notification of imports from EU countries. The advance notification by the importer includes a requirement to state the country of origin of the seed potatoes.

However, as previously indicated in my reply to question of 841 of Feb 2022, there were two consignments imported, one in 2017 and a second in 2019 where the respective pre-import notification forms submitted did not include the Country of Origin. Steps were taken to ensure this error was not repeated.

Seed potatoes from third countries (with the exception of Switzerland which has equivalent plant health status to the EU) are banned from entering the EU.

I am committed to seeing the return of a domestic seed potato sector in Ireland. If the industry wants the return, I will back it and it is mu hope that we can see a return to the heyday of the sector here in Ireland.

Forestry Sector

Questions (839)

Matt Carthy

Question:

839. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the updated forestry licensing target by licence type for 2022; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6720/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

My Department issued 4,050 forestry licences last year, which is an increase of 56% on the number issued in 2020, and met our revised target of 4,000 licences. It is our intention to build on this momentum in 2022.

I published a licensing plan for 2022 last week, detailing a range of forestry priorities for 2022. On licensing the main priorities are:

- A target of 5,250 new licences to issue, which is a year-on-year increase of 30%.

- A higher priority will be given to afforestation licences for 2022 with a 107% increase in output up to 1,040.

- There will be a year-on-year increase of 48% of private felling, roads and afforestation files. Coillte felling licences will maintain the levels they achieved in 2021.

- The Department will also refocus on the delivery of approvals from several schemes including Reconstitution and Underplanting Scheme (RUS) (Ash Dieback), the Reconstitution of Woodland Scheme (Frost), the Native Woodland Scheme and a proposed small-scale planting scheme for up to one hectare of native species.

My Department will continue to issue progress updates weekly through our forestry dashboard and quarterly through a more comprehensive KPI update on implementation of the licensing strategy.

Forestry Sector

Questions (840)

Matt Carthy

Question:

840. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the allocation in 2022 for a new system facilitating a pre-application engagement between the forester and his Department; the number of individual licences the pilot applies to; the types of licences the pilot applies to; when the pilot is due to conclude; if successful, when it is intended to roll-out the scheme more broadly; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6721/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

The Mackinnon report commissioned by the Department to review the processes and procedures for forestry licenses in Ireland, recommended that pre-applications discussions be implemented. This is intended as a tool to help foresters understand the regulatory aspects of a particular application through a pre-application discussion with the Department forestry inspector.

The details of this were worked out under Project Woodland and a pilot Pre-Application Discussion (PAD) opened on 18th January 2022 and will run until 18th April 2022.

The PAD is for afforestation proposals only. All registered foresters are invited to take part in a PAD if they have a potential afforestation site in the designated pilot areas. After the pilot, my Department will work with stakeholders to review the main outcomes from the pilot phase and develop a national roll-out plan.

Forestry Sector

Questions (841)

Matt Carthy

Question:

841. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when it is planned to provide a financial contribution to afforestation applicants towards the cost of environmental reports; the intended allocation for 2022; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6722/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

The introduction of a grant to compensate for providing an environmental report during the application assessment process is currently being developed by my Department and expected to be introduced shortly. This is per the recommendations in the MacKinnon report.

Separately, a feasibility study on different payment approaches is also currently being undertaken. When this work is complete, the introduction of the grant, allocation, etc. will be finalised and notified to stakeholders.

Agriculture Schemes

Questions (842)

Matt Carthy

Question:

842. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the funding allocated to the pilot soil sampling scheme; the number of places within the scheme this was intended to facilitate; the number of successful and unsuccessful candidates by county; the basis on which applicants were selected or refused; the number of successful applicants affected by reported delays by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6724/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

A budget of €10 million has been allocated to the pilot Soil Sampling and Analysis Programme.

The Programme aims to cover the cost of approximately 80,000 to 100,000 soil samples at an average cost of €105 per sample. With a maximum of 16 samples per farm, it was anticipated that over 7,500 applicants would be accepted into the Programme.

The application period closed on 8th October 2021. Due to oversubscription, 7,879 successful applicants were selected from a total of 15,820 applicants. Table 1 below shows the number of total applicants and successful applicants by county.

Applicants were selected for the programme on a first come first serve basis with additional steps to ensure appropriate geographic and sectoral spread. Nationally, applicants were grouped according to their NUTS 3 region (7 regions) and their relevant self-selected farm enterprise type (5 types). CSO Farm Structure Survey data provided the relative spread of enterprise type per NUTS 3 region. This was scaled down from National figures allowing comparison with the Soil Sampling Programme figures to ensure representative approvals.

The pilot Soil Sampling and Analysis Programme is a substantial and ambitious programme. Soil sampling is ongoing and taking place across all counties. Farmers who were approved into the Programme were informed that their sampling contract runs to 31st December 2022. Approved participants who do not have their soil sampled this spring will have a further opportunity to have samples taken in the autumn if they wish.

Table 1. Number of total applicants and successful applicants by county

County	Total Applications	Total Successful
Carlow	267	189
Cavan	643	452
Clare	527	238
Cork	2313	869
Donegal	1197	547
Dublin	45	30
Galway	1658	766
Kerry	792	377
Kildare	225	141
Kilkenny	378	226
Laois	393	142
Leitrim	283	165
Limerick	566	212
Longford	366	152
Louth	138	93
Mayo	965	477
Meath	346	266
Monaghan	179	96
Offaly	391	146
Roscommon	742	497
Sligo	497	306
Tipperary	905	457
Waterford	311	192
Westmeath	730	282
Wexford	674	395
Wicklow	289	166
Total	15820	7879

Agriculture Schemes

Questions (843)

Matt Carthy

Question:

843. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his attention has been drawn to delays within the pilot soil sampling scheme; the consequences for farmers spreading lime, fertiliser or slurry prior to sampling taking place; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6725/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

The pilot Soil Sampling and Analysis Programme is a substantial, innovative and ambitious programme with over 7,800 farmers approved to participate. The Letter of Approval issued to approved participants informed them that their Soil Sampling contract runs to 31st December 2022.

I am fully aware of progress under this pilot through my Department's regular engagement with the service provider. I acknowledge progress has been behind expectation, however soil sampling and analysis is continuing and progress is accelerating. The progress to date has not been good enough and my Department has engaged with the service provider to increase output in the scheme.

The service provider is managing the list of farmers approved for sampling. They are contacting each farmer prior to sampling. If a farmer has applied lime, slurry or fertiliser (other than straight nitrogen), they should advise the person who will be taking the samples when they make contact to arrange sampling.

In accordance with normal soil sampling requirements, as outlined in the Teagasc Publication “Major and Micro Nutrient Advice for Productive Agricultural Crops,” land that has received phosphorous or potassium, (or slurry) should not be sampled for 3 to 6 months after the last application of phosphorous and/or potassium. Where lime has been applied to correct soil pH, the advice to farmers is to allow a time lag of up to two years before soil sampling to determine lime requirements.

Even if nutrients have been applied to some fields, it may still be possible to take soil samples in other fields on an approved participant’s farm this spring. Approved participants who don’t have their land sampled this spring will have a further opportunity to have samples taken in the autumn if they wish.

Common Agricultural Policy

Questions (844)

Matt Carthy

Question:

844. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he plans to publish the CAP Strategic Plan given the 16 other European Union member states have done so; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6726/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

Ireland's CAP Strategic Plan was made available to stakeholders, and published at the following link: www.gov.ie/cap, on Wednesday 2nd February.

Tax Code

Questions (845)

Matt Carthy

Question:

845. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the position of his Department, the expected impact and mitigation measures his Department intends to introduce with regard to privately owned farmland being within the remit of the zoned residential land tax from 2024; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6727/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

One of a range of measures within the Housing for All Strategy, the objective of the Residential Zoned Land Tax is to provide an incentive to landowners to build homes. It applies only to serviced land that is zoned suitable for residential development.

The Department Of Housing, Planning and Local Government estimates that it is expected to impact 7,000 hectares to 8,000 hectares of farmland, or less than 0.2% of such land in the country.

Local authorities will prepare maps so that landowners will know if their land is within scope. The legislation provides an opportunity to landowners to request a variation of the zoning of their land prior to the commencement of the tax.

Should a farmer believe that the residential zoning of their land is inappropriate, they may avail of this opportunity to have the zoning status of their land considered by the local authority.

Brexit Issues

Questions (846)

Sorca Clarke

Question:

846. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his engagements with his counterpart in Northern Ireland since the order to stop checks on certain goods at ports in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6763/22]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

The Government remains in close and on-going contact on this issue with the UK Government, with Northern Ireland representatives and with the European Commission and EU partners, but I have not had direct contact with my counterpart in Northern Ireland, since the order to stop checks issued.

The instruction by the Minister of Agriculture in Northern Ireland to cease post-Brexit sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) checks on relevant goods moving between Great Britain and Northern Ireland is very unhelpful. It creates uncertainty and unpredictability for people and for businesses in Northern Ireland. As has been noted by European Commission Vice-President, Maros Šefcovic, these checks are a key element of the Protocol. They are not optional – they have a clear legal basis both in UK domestic law as well as in international law.

The Irish Government and the European Commission have been clear in calling on the British Government to uphold the law, to stand by its agreements, and to provide certainty to the business community and other relevant stakeholders, so that Northern Ireland’s peace and prosperity are properly safeguarded.

The European Union has also been resolute in its efforts to find solutions to the outstanding issues regarding the implementation of the Protocol. The Commission’s October 2021 proposals directly address the concerns raised by unionists, including significantly reducing checks on goods moving between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. I look forward to meaningful engagement by the British Government on these issues over the coming weeks.

Control of Dogs

Questions (847)

Cormac Devlin

Question:

847. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development if her attention has been drawn to the recent introduction of the presa canario breed of dog into Ireland and that the breed is currently banned in the United Kingdom; the current status of this breed of dog in Ireland; if she is considering restrictions given recent incidents; and if she will provide an update on the matter. [6278/22]

Written answers

Minister for Rural and Community Development

While I am aware that the presa canario breed of dog has been introduced into Ireland, the banning of any particular breed of dog in the United Kingdom is a matter for that jurisdiction.

The Control of Dogs Acts 1986 to 2014 set out a range of requirements for all dog owners or any other person in charge of a dog. The Control of Dogs Regulations 1998 set out further requirements that owners of specific breeds of dogs have to follow, namely that such dogs must be muzzled and led, on a sufficiently strong leash or chain not exceeding 2 metres in length, by a competent person over 16 years of age when in a public place.

Concerns have been raised regarding the overall approach to the regulation of restricted breeds. There is also the view that some additional breeds such as the presa canario may warrant inclusion on the list of restricted breeds. My Department is considering these and other points as part of a review of the legislation in this area and is now identifying any necessary legislative amendments that may be required with a view to inclusion in the Government’s legislative programme.

Rural Schemes

Questions (848)

Niamh Smyth

Question:

848. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development if the stringent rules involved in allocating panic alarms locally (details supplied) will be urgently reviewed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5822/22]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Rural and Community Development

My Department is responsible for the Seniors Alert Scheme which encourages community support for vulnerable older people in our communities through the provision of personal monitored alarms to enable them to live securely in their homes with confidence, independence and peace of mind. Funding is available under the scheme towards the purchase by a registered community-based organisation of a personal alarm or pendant.

Following a review, an updated version of the scheme came into effect in November 2017. A number of changes were introduced at this time, including the provision of free monitoring for the first year and a revision of the living alone requirements. However, eligibility to the scheme remains confined to those aged 65 or older.

The current version of the scheme came into effect in September 2021 and continues to incorporate these provisions, as well as introducing a new key feature in the additional option of a digital alarm, for use with web based connections.

Rural Schemes

Questions (849)

Michael Healy-Rae

Question:

849. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development if her Department will inform local authorities of their local improvement scheme allocation (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5986/22]

Written answers

Minister for Rural and Community Development

As part of 'Our Rural Future', the Government is committed to ensuring that the Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) is funded into the future. This reflects the important contribution which the scheme makes to connectivity in rural Ireland. The LIS supports the improvement of rural roads and laneways that are not normally maintained by local authorities.

I launched the 2021 Scheme with an initial budget of €10.5 million. I was very pleased to source additional funding during the year and allocated a further round of funding to bring the total for 2021 to €21 million.

I was also pleased, as part of Budget 2022 to announce an increase in the base funding for LIS from €10.5 million to €11 million for this year.

I will be launching this year's scheme in the coming weeks at which point individual county council allocations will be made known.

Departmental Funding

Questions (850)

Cormac Devlin

Question:

850. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the number and name of local authorities that did not make an application for funding under Rural Regeneration and Development Fund category 2 in the last round of funding in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6018/22]

Written answers

Minister for Rural and Community Development

The Rural Regeneration and Development Fund provides funding for the development and construction of capital projects in towns and villages across rural Ireland. A total of €277 million has been allocated to 191 projects across the country, worth a total of €375 million.

Calls for applications to the Fund are sought under two categories – Category 1 and Category 2. Category 1 relates to large scale ambitious capital projects with all necessary planning and other consents in place and which are ready to proceed. Category 2 provides funding to enable the development of project proposals suitable for future calls for Category 1 applications.

The third call for Category 2 applications to the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund closed on 30th July 2021. My Department received 53 applications to this call. Applications were not received from the local authorities set out in the table below.

In December 2021 I announced the opening of the fourth call for Category 1 applications under the Fund. The closing date for applications is 29th April 2022. A guidance document and application form relating to the call can be accessed on my Department's website.

Local Authority
Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council
Kildare County Council
South Dublin County Council
Wexford County Council