Parliamentary questions

2186. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his plans for an introduction of salary bands for veterinary nurses, ensuring they reflect the qualification status; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23956/26]

2187. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department plans to include paid placements for student veterinary nurses, similar to those in the HSE, given the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on students; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23957/26]

2188. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department plans to formally recognise veterinary nurses as essential healthcare professionals within national workforce and mental health strategies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23958/26]

2189. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the measures his Department has taken to provide greater oversight of corporate veterinary employment practices to ensure fair competition and protect staff welfare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23959/26]

2190. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department plans to provide funding to support practices employing registered veterinary nurses, enabling fair pay without passing the entire cost onto pet owners and farmers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23960/26]

2191. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on a matter regarding farm partnerships (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23990/26]

2192. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the total quantity of beef imported by licensed and approved export, slaughtering, and processing plants in the Republic of Ireland in 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24085/26]

2193. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason for the reduction in the selection threshold under the animal welfare nutrient storage scheme from 80% to 60% under TAMS 3, tranche 10; the number of applications received, approved, and deemed eligible but not funded under this tranche; if he will review the current ranking and selection criteria with a v…

2194. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of applications for funding under TAMS for solar panels; and the number that were successful, for 2024, 2025, and to date in 2026. [24160/26]

2195. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to make every effort to ensure that inshore boats are allowed to land at any port; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24178/26]

2196. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to examine the possibility of increasing the amount of pelagic fish caught by inshore boats from ten tonnes up to 25 tonnes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24179/26]

2197. Deputy Séamus McGrath asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine regarding the derogation on religious grounds under article 4 of EU Regulation 1099/2009, whereby animals may be slaughtered using non-stun methods in Ireland, whether a specific permission was sought on each occasion; and the number of times this derogation has been used/invoked in the year 2025. [24187/26]

2198. Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if a separate fund could be put in place specifically for increasing slurry storage capacity on foot of the sixth NAP (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24220/26]

2199. Deputy Keira Keogh asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if an animal welfare officer will be appointed in County Mayo; when they will be appointed; and if one will not be appointed, the reasons for this; and the way in which Mayo is expected to manage concerns about animal welfare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24274/26]

2200. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the level of stocks of fertilisers are available in Ireland in the event of disruption to international supply chains; the supports in place to ensure adequate suppliers of fertiliser to Irish agriculture; if supplies are being actively monitored; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24404/26]

2201. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department has assessed or considered the creation of a national strategic fertiliser reserve that would ensure adequate supplies are available to farmers in Ireland in the event of global supply chain disruption; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24405/26]

2202. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the action his Department intends to take following the EPA early insights nitrogen indicators report showing that nitrogen levels in rivers rose by 10% in 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24406/26]

2203. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department has considered the establishment of a dedicated 24-hour animal welfare enforcement unit, including enhanced inspection and investigation capacity to address incidents of animal cruelty; the measures currently in place to detect and prosecute such offences; any plans to strengthen enforcement resou…

2204. Deputy Naoise Ó Cearúil asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether any artificial intelligence tools or systems are currently being used within his Department or in agencies under its remit; the purposes for which these tools are being used; whether any departmental guidance or governance structures have been developed to support their responsible use; and if he will mak…

2205. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the amount of Government funding provided to environmental NGOs (details supplied) in each of the past ten years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24497/26]

2206. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the value and duration of contracts and service provision arrangements his Department and all bodies under his aegis have or had with a company (details supplied) in the past ten years to date in 2026; if he will clarify whether his Department was the beneficiary of professional work or services from the company ov…

2207. Deputy Shónagh Ní Raghallaigh asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of non-coursing greyhounds that were prepared for homing under the Irish Retired Greyhound Trust homing programme (details supplied) for each of the years 2023, 2024 and 2025; the number of the dogs prepared under this programme in each of the years 2023, 2024 and 2025 that were subsequently home…

2208. Deputy Shónagh Ní Raghallaigh asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the total number of non-coursing greyhounds on the waiting list for an Irish Retired Greyhound Trust kennel space as of 23 March 2026; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24586/26]

2209. Deputy Shónagh Ní Raghallaigh asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the total amount claimed in travelling expenses by operators of the seven foster centres funded by the Irish Retired Greyhound Trust for each of the years 2023, 2024 and 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24587/26]

2210. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to provide a list of the NGOs that have received Government funding from his Department in the past five years. [24623/26]