I propose to take Questions Nos. 155 to 158, inclusive, together.
The position is that officials in the Special Investigation Unit are officers of my Department and they operate fully in accordance with national and EU legislation. I am not aware of any widespread concern at the manner in which the SIU has carried out its work or that it has abused its powers of investigation. The investigations carried out by the SIU have formed the basis for the majority of the successful Court prosecutions taken on behalf of my Department over the past 20 years, which in itself is clear evidence of the integrity of the officials involved in the Unit and the fact that they operate in accordance with the rule of law.
The investigative procedures adopted by the SIU comply with the standard requirements in regard to the taking and presentation of evidence and the rights of the person or persons being investigated. They follow the same protocols as are used for criminal investigation carried out by the Garda. On occasion, investigations by the Unit involve the use of search warrants, with all the rules of evidence being complied with. Interviews are carried out under caution and statements are prepared for use in court by Counsel on behalf of the Department. When an investigation is complete a report is prepared and forwarded to the relevant section of the Department for further action in relation to any grant payments due.
A formal code of practice relating to the operations of the SIU, which codified existing guidelines, was put in place in February 2004. While this provides that, in the first instance, complaints are dealt with through line management and, if necessary, subsequently through the Quality Service Unit, complainants also have recourse to third party bodies such as the Ombudsman's Office and, if necessary, the Courts. Only two matters have been referred to the Department since publication of the code in 2004 and these were resolved satisfactorily within the Department.
The annual costs of the operation of the Special Investigation Unit in 2009, 2010 and 2011 were as follows:
|
Year
|
Salaries and T and S
|
|
2009
|
€0.916m
|
|
2010
|
€0.845m
|
|
2011
|
€0.817m
|
The SIU has focused much of its energies on enforcing legislation on animal remedies, disease eradication and animal identification in respect of the small subset of those involved in the sector who attempt to profit from illegal activities. Its success in enforcing this legislation has established its value as the primary deterrent and this has resulted in a very high level of compliance in the food industry as a whole with regulatory requirements, thereby assisting in the eradication of diseases such as Brucellosis and BSE. This, in turn, has facilitated the production of high quality food and safeguarded the reputation of the Irish food industry both on the home and export markets, which is essential for continued growth. The value of the agri-food industry in 2011 was €22 billion and agri-food exports were worth €8.9 billion. It is vitally important for the continued growth of the food industry, which is so dependent on export markets, that it complies with, and is seen to comply with, national and EU regulations.
I accept that many of the regulatory requirements in the animal health and food safety area are complex and my Department makes great efforts to explain and communicate these requirements to the farming sector. The relatively small number of prosecutions that come before the courts suggest that the vast majority of farmers both understand and comply with these requirements. As part of the EU CAP negotiations, I am continuing to press for greater simplification of EU regulations and requirements. I intend to continue this as the reform process continues.
In conclusion, I would like to emphasise that farmers generally and others in the agri-food sector have no reason to be concerned with the activities of the SIU. Indeed the operations of the SIU protects the interests of farmers generally and the reputation of the Irish food industry from the malpractices of the few. I do not intend to order an independent review of the operation of the Unit, though, in common with all other areas of the Department's activities, the role and functions of the SIU will be kept under constant review.
