Results 1-20 of 1,058,018 for in 'Dáil debates' OR (speaker:Niall Ó Brolcháin OR speaker:Catherine Murphy OR speaker:Norma Foley OR speaker:Brian Stanley OR speaker:Jack Chambers OR speaker:Roderic O'Gorman) in 'Committee meetings'

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Brian Stanley: We have apologies from Deputies John Brady, Ciarán Cannon and Imelda Munster. I ask all those in attendance to ensure that their mobile phones are switched off or on silent mode. I wish to explain some limitations to parliamentary privilege and the practices of the Houses as regards references witnesses may make to other persons in their evidence. The evidence of witnesses...

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Brian Stanley: I thank Mr. Gleeson. Before we go to questions, I wish to clarify something from last week's meeting. At last week's hearing, Mr. Sheahan, deputy chief veterinary officer in the Department, was here. Questions were asked by Deputy Catherine Murphy and I regarding potential historical incidents at the Straffan plant that appeared in the "Prime Time" investigation programme. I said, "In...

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Brian Stanley: Two issues highlighted. How did we get an answer like that from assistant chief veterinary officer? Will Mr. Blake, as the chief veterinary officer, or Mr. Callanan, as the chief inspector, comment?

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Brian Stanley: We take that as a given.

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Brian Stanley: To use the word "reasonable" and put it back to Mr. Gleeson, would it not have been reasonable and would there not have been an expectation that he could have said - I want to be careful in what I say at the committee - that there is an ongoing Garda-led investigation into the individuals and a court prosecution due to be heard?

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Brian Stanley: The horse racing sector was before the committee. Mr. Sheahan came in as a representative of the Department. Is Mr. Gleeson seriously trying to tell me that in the briefing before he came in here, and as the deputy chief veterinary officer, he would not have been aware that there was an ongoing court case regarding this plant?

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Brian Stanley: What is Mr. Gleeson trying to say?

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Brian Stanley: No one wants Mr. Gleeson to draw conclusions from an ongoing court case. I, the committee and Deputy Catherine Murphy, are trying to get an answer to these questions. There was an ongoing investigation. We asked specifically about historical cases regarding the individuals involved and the plan and this was not mentioned. Here it is now in a reply to a parliamentary question answered...

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Brian Stanley: That fact was highly relevant to answers we tried to get to questions here last Thursday morning. We will leave it at that for now.

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Catherine Murphy: I wish everyone a good morning. It is infuriating when you have a witness in front of you and discover you have not received a fair response. In this case, it is fortunate that the witnesses are here a couple of weeks after the representatives of Horse Racing Ireland and the IHRB were before the committee. That is the context. A Department official was here. It is infuriating to have to...

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Catherine Murphy: Surely, fit and proper person in the case of animal welfare is key. It does not matter if the walls of this slaughterhouse were paved with gold; it is how the process is conducted. Animal welfare has to be a central piece to that. Mr. Gleeson talked about vets who have an interest in animal welfare. How would that not be interpreted as a requirement?

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Catherine Murphy: After the event. Is there an age requirement for an animal welfare officer?

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Catherine Murphy: If the Department were to go to court with someone who was under 18 who was the animal welfare officer, would the court question their age and whether they had the legal standing because of their age?

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Catherine Murphy: Could it have been the case that they were under 18?

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Catherine Murphy: This is supposed to be a position of high responsibility. It is supposed to be somebody who is trained, accredited and all of that. What does the accreditation process require?

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Catherine Murphy: Can Mr. Gleeson provide us with the detail on that?

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Catherine Murphy: Regarding the licence for Shannonside, was there an amendment to the area that was covered from one licence to the next? Did it, for example, include the lairage?

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Catherine Murphy: I put questions on the last occasion regarding horse passports. I do not have the transcript with me but the impression I got from the official from the Department replying to me was that they could not understand how this could have happened and there were no concerns, yet we know there were issues with passports going back to 2013 and there was another facility where, my understanding is,...

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Catherine Murphy: I do not want to go into the areas that are under investigation.

Public Accounts Committee: 2022 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (11 Jul 2024)

Catherine Murphy: Was the departmental officials aware there were problems when they were in front of us? How could they not be?