To answer the Deputy's question about why the Minister is in Brussels this evening, he is out there fighting for Irish farmers and Irish agriculture in probably the most important aspect of the CAP trilogues, the super trilogues, that are happening over the next couple of days. Farmers in Deputy MacSharry's constituency and mine take a great interest in what he is doing there. There is an element of shooting the messenger in some of the Deputy's commentary. I bring him back to the point that the decisions being mad…

I thank the Senator for raising this important matter. I congratulate her on her recent re-election to Seanad Éireann. It is great to see her back on the agricultural panel. It is also great that one of the first topics she has raised on her return relates to such an important area of agriculture. I thank the Senator for that. The Senator is right that it is not just about farm safety, it is also about farmers' mental health and well-being, especially in these Covid times. I am aware that it is hard on all of us an…

The Senator is dead right. I am delighted to hear her equate farm safety, well-being and mental health because there is no doubt they are deeply interconnected. The agrifood strategy for 2030, which is currently out for public consultation, reflects that. We talk about a food systems approach to agriculture in the future and the sustainability of all the systems, that is, not just environmental sustainability, which is crucial, but also economic and societal sustainability in order to allow farmers to continue to d…

I am sharing time with Deputy Ó Cuív. I must express my surprise at some of the comments, particular those from Deputy Pringle. I consider myself a proud European and I believe that Ireland benefits from being at the heart of Europe. I also believe passionately in the principle of subsidiarity, enshrined in the Maastricht treaty, with member states having power over as many elements as they can rather than having all powers centralised. I was shocked to hear the Deputy state that he would prefer power to be central…

I thank Deputies Richmond and Carroll MacNeill for raising what is an important issue which is being raised with Deputies in constituency offices the length and breadth of the country. It has happened for several reasons, as the Deputies outlined. I am pleased to report that the Passport Office continues to provide a high quality, essential service in line with the Government's public health guidance outlined in our national framework on living with Covid-19. At the outset, I express the apologies of the Minister f…

Both Deputies Richmond and Carroll MacNeill have outlined very well the reasons we need to get back to full service. Nobody wants to do that more than the staff of the passport service in a safe way as soon as public health guidelines allow. It is helpful to put on the record that the volume of applications received in the past year has been significantly impacted by the pandemic. As a result, the number of applications currently in our system awaiting processing is quite low in terms of a normal year. That is not …

As we are all too aware, 2020 was an especially challenging year. While we had the expected uncertainty of Brexit, it was overshadowed by the unexpected Covid-19 pandemic. The Minister, Deputy McConalogue, has referred to the sector demonstrating its resilience, which has been remarkable. The pandemic placed unprecedented stresses on food supply chains, with bottlenecks in farm labour, processing, transport and logistics, as well as momentous shifts in demand that could not have been predicted prior to the pandemic…

I thank both Senators for raising this issue and showing their interest in this area. As the Minister for Kildare, as it were, I take on board the points raised. No one can doubt the passion for my county and my close connection with the equine sector. I recognise the acknowledgement that the Senators, as public representatives for our county, share of the important role that equine activity plays in Kildare. That is important. It is also important to put some context on what I am about to say. Horse Sport Ireland …

Nobody knows better than me how important Punchestown is to the rural economy and to the economy of Kildare. I worked at Punchestown Racecourse for four years and was actually a course builder for a number of summers on the three-day equestrian course, which is a fantastic facility in Punchestown. I would love to see HSI set up in Punchestown. Punchestown has been mentioned, as has Goffs, and there are numerous other places such as the Kill Equestrian Centre, which the State has previously invested in but which is …

I thank Deputy Mattie McGrath for bringing this legislation before the House. I acknowledge the concerns raised by him and Deputies Carthy, Quinlivan, Shanahan and Gino Kenny. They originally spoke about sulky racing but their concerns were broader than that and went into the area of horse welfare and beyond. Most people in Kildare are passionate about racehorses, much like Deputy McGrath and Tipperary people, and as a Kildare man I know this is a debate that needs to be had. I am very happy that my Department has …

It is for the Department of-----

Gaining third country market access and opening up trading opportunities throughout the world for Irish exports has long been integral to the Department’s strategic approach to the development of the agrifood sector. This has grown increasingly important as we deal with the challenges presented by both the Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit. While trade missions will continue to play a key role here, our traditional in-person method of developing trade with customers is not currently feasible. To that end, the Minister a…

The Deputy makes a valid point. With any new start-up, whether innovative or otherwise, there are challenges of scale and of ramping up all of the competences within that company quickly enough for it to be able to put its best foot forward. From the political perspective, the Minister and I use our good offices to open those opportunities. Working closely with the State agencies, we try and open the door for businesses which have key market opportunities in these areas. We deal closely with the likes of Bord Bia i…

The Department has a network of agricultural attachés throughout the embassy network. Through the Department of Foreign Affairs and the embassy network, we have increased significantly the footprint of Irish diplomats and supports all across the world. The Bord Bia team is phenomenal. In my short time in the Department and in this role, I have been impressed by the young dynamic talent we have all over the world in terms of opening those doors. Therefore, there should be no barrier to small innovative companies, wh…

The sustainable healthy agri-food research plan, SHARP, was developed and published in 2015 in response to the then Government's national research prioritisation exercise, NRPE. The plan has guided our key research priorities over recent years in respect of the competitive funding programmes we operate. My Department, as part of its agri-food strategy to 2030 will, in due course, develop a new research and innovation agenda as a successor to SHARP. This will reflect the key focus on innovation in both Food Wise 202…

The national research prioritisation exercise and how it related to SHARP was born out of the wake of the financial crisis. The then Government established an independent group of mainly external experts to identify priority areas for research funding under competitively operated programmes based on set criteria. Two of those areas were smart, sustainable food production and processing and food for health. Just as was done on that occasion, we, too, will look at the present set of circumstances. The successor to Fo…

Devising strategy is an ongoing and ever-evolving process. The Department and I are absolutely determined to identify new opportunities for our premier producers to improve and supplement their income. There are huge opportunities in a number of areas. When we talk about environmental elements, it tends to be with a fairly negative approach insofar as they may impact on agriculture, primary producers and farmers. However, if one looks at the bioeconomy, for example, there is potential for us to identify areas where…

European Union legislation provides for a set of harmonised rules to ensure that food and feed are safe, and to ensure a high level of human, animal and plant health, as well as animal welfare along the agrifood chain. Primary responsibility for ensuring that the obligations set out in Union legislation are met rests with operators. The official controls regulation is clear that the responsibility to enforce Union agrifood chain legislation lies with member states, whose competent authorities monitor and verify, th…

That is a fair point. At the end of the day, we control what we control on the EU side, and we have to presume that what the final set of agreements is would have reciprocal approaches on both sides. What we have always wanted, both in Ireland and as part of the EU, is as close a working relationship as possible with Great Britain. A huge amount of our trade, particularly in the agrifood sector, goes both ways across the Irish Sea. Anything other than a close working relationship makes no sense for either of us. On…

What I can guarantee is that Ireland, at the heart of the EU, will maintain the integrity of the Single Market, which is critical. We see our place as being at the heart of Europe. We see the benefits for the Irish people, the Irish agrifood business, farmers and food producers to be at the heart of a European Union that is a trading bloc of 500 million people. As a very active member of that European Union, we will not allow the Single Market to be undermined and we will vigorously uphold that market. That is why …