Parliamentary questions

748. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of delayed ACRES payments, by county, and by average duration of delay; the reason for the delay; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55354/25]

749. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he is aware that 396 farmers have yet to receive their final ACRES payment for 2023; when these payments will be processed; the reason for the continued delay; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55355/25]

750. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department and each body under its aegis discloses expenditure on external consultancy and adviser fees, by category (details supplied) in their annual report and or financial statements for each accounting year; if they provide direct web links to the most recent publications where these Section 1.5 disclosure…

751. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on his Department’s work to explore measures to encourage the use of inhibited urea, as committed to in the Climate Action Plan 2025 and due in Q3 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55514/25]

752. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on his Department’s work to tackle the challenge of securing access and cost of feed in the organic livestock sector, as committed to in the Climate Action Plan 2025 and due in Q4 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55515/25]

753. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on his Department’s preparation of a Land-Use Strategic Implementation Plan to deliver the Coillte Forest Estate Strategic Land-Use Plan, as committed to in the Climate Action Plan 2025 and due in Q4 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55516/25]

754. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on his Department’s work to raise awareness among forest owners of the impact of timing when deciding to fell their forest, as committed to in the Climate Action Plan 2025 and due in Q3 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55517/25]

755. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on his Department’s launching of complementary actions in 2025 under ACRES cooperation projects, aimed at reduction in land use emissions, as committed to in the Climate Action Plan 2025 and due in Q3 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55518/25]

756. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on his Department’s identification of funding mechanisms that would support emissions reductions from land use, as committed to in the Climate Action Plan 2025 and due in Q3 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55519/25]

757. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on his Department’s development of a sectoral adaptation plan for the agriculture sector, as committed to in the Climate Action Plan 2025 and due in Q3 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55520/25]

758. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on his Department’s development of a sectoral adaptation plan for the forestry sector, as committed to in the Climate Action Plan 2025 and due in Q3 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55521/25]

759. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on his Department’s development of a sectoral adaptation plan for the seafood sector, as committed to in the Climate Action Plan 2025 and due in Quarter 3 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55522/25]

760. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on his Department’s development of a system for the monitoring and reporting of methane reducing feed and manure ingredients, as committed to in the Climate Action Plan 2025 and due in Quarter 4 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55523/25]

284. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his views on the merger of the ISPCA and DSPCA into a national SPCA; if he will address concerns (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54237/25]

285. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the interim measures he intends to put in place to ensure national inspectorate coverage during the transition period to a national SPCA and ensure that enforcement capacity is not weakened by the focus on organisational restructuring; if he can provide clarity on timelines, resources and governance for the new …

286. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will urgently review the allocation of funding under the animal welfare grant programme and the designation of authorised officers under Section 37 of the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54239/25]

287. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will appoint designated inspectors to an organisation (details supplied) as authorised officers to close current enforcement gaps for at least ten counties, to provide legal certainty in ongoing investigations and support Gardaí during the transition to a national SPCA; and if he will make a statement on t…

288. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if the merger of the ISPCA and the DSPCA signals a shift in Department policy toward centralisation of animal welfare services; if so, the rationale; how national coverage will be maintained or improved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54241/25]

289. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the way in which his Department plans to support or issue specific charities that play critical roles in local animal welfare but may lack the scale of the newly merged SPCA organisation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54242/25]

290. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine how his Department will evaluate whether the merger of the ISPCA and the DSPCA results in improved animal welfare outcomes nationally, not just improved administration within the merged charity; if there will be a review of the overall funding model to ensure it reflects evolving needs, especially with over 100 …

291. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department was consulted in advance of the ISPCA and DSPCA merger; whether an impact assessment was conducted on implications for public funding distribution; if increased oversight and performance metrics will apply to the newly merged organisation given the significant increase in public funds it will c…

292. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine given that the merged ISPCA–DSPCA entity will now receive approximately one-third of all national animal welfare funding, the way in which his Department will ensure that smaller, regional and grassroots charities are not further marginalised; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54245/25]

293. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department will review its grant allocation to ensure fairness, transparency and proportionality, particularly in light of the consolidation between the ISPCA-DSCPA; the safeguards that will be put in place to ensure this concentration of funding does not reduce services or support in areas not directly s…

294. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update regarding the enforcement of nitrate pollution related to farming; if his attention has been drawn to algal blooms, related to the overuse of nitrates, causing discoloration and other issues to the water supply; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54254/25]

295. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his views on whether existing regulations are adequate to prevent the excessive use of nitrates leading to potential run off into the water system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54255/25]