Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome Deputy Kenny again to the role of Opposition spokesperson on agriculture, food and the marine and wish him well. He was always good to work with in the past. He is an able operator.

I thank the Chairman and members of the committee. I am pleased to be here today for Committee Stage of the Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2024. The Bill amends the Agriculture Appeals Act 2001, its primary purpose being the establishment of an independent agriculture appeals review panel. As Deputies will be aware, the current programme for Government includes a commitment to establish such a panel in law. I am delighted to deliver on that commitment. The main purpose of this review panel will be to conduct reviews of the decisions of appeals officers, a function currently carried out by the director of agriculture appeals. As provided for in the Bill, the review panel will consist of the following seven members: an independent chairperson; the director or deputy director of the agriculture appeals office; and five additional members with experience relevant to the functions of the panel. The establishment of this panel will further enhance the independence of the appeals process and provide greater reassurance to the farming community. The Bill also introduces a time limit of six months for seeking a review of a decision of an appeals officer where there was no time limit in place before.

As an entirely separate measure, the Bill also includes an amendment to the Fisheries (Amendment) Act 1997. This is a minor amendment to remove the existing requirement for the chair and members of the Aquaculture Licences Appeals Board to vacate office on reaching 70 years of age. It is my intention to introduce one further amendment to the Fisheries (Amendment) Act 1997 on Report Stage to alter the tenure of the chairperson of the Aquaculture Licences Appeals Board from the current default period of five years to a period not exceeding five years to align with the code of practice for the governance of State bodies.

I am conscious of the views expressed by members on Second Stage of this Bill and by stakeholders throughout lengthy consultations on the Bill. I am grateful for that input. I sought to accommodate as many of the suggestions as possible from the committee as part of pre-legislative scrutiny and earlier Stages of the Bill in the structure of the Bill. I thank everyone for their engagement so far and thank the committee for facilitating Committee Stage today.