
DAFM will ‘endeavour' to provide adequate notice of farm inspections
In a parliamentary question this week, Deputy Cahill also asked the minister to ensure that inspections do not take place during the lambing period.
The TD suggested conducting inspections during shearing from mid-June to mid-July, or ramming from mid-September to early November, to minimise disruption for farmers.
In response, Minister Heydon highlighted that on-farm inspections are a requirement of EU regulations.
According to the minister, the inspection approach and reporting system used is standardised across all areas of the country, to ensure consistency and fair treatment of all farmers.
Minister Heydon said: 'In relation to providing notice for on-farm inspections, as agreed in the Farmers' Charter of Rights with the farm bodies, all inspections will, in the main, be announced.
'However, where giving such notice interferes with the purpose or effectiveness of the control, no notice is given. The level of notice given is generally two days.'
'In duly justified cases, additional notice may be given but limited to the minimum necessary. This may particularly be the case for inspections involving hill sheep flocks,' Minister Heydon explained.
Farm inspections
According to Minister Heydon, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) takes account of the circumstances and follows agreed protocols with the farming bodies in relation to penning at lambing time.
'I can assure the deputy that in relation to carrying out inspections in hill sheep areas, my department will endeavour to take account of the timing of inspections relative to when sheep move to and from the hills,' Minister Heydon said.
He also said that DAFM will 'endeavour' to provide adequate notice and tolerances to take account of the unique circumstances in the hill areas, while at the same time endeavouring to complete the necessary inspections to ensure that farmers receive their payments on time.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Irish Examiner
12 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Billy Kelleher calls on Fianna Fáil to meet sooner than planned to discuss presidential candidate
Fianna Fáil should convene a meeting urgently to discuss the forthcoming presidential election, according to Billy Kelleher, the party's MEP for Ireland South. Mr Kelleher added that without a meeting convened soon, Fianna Fáil TDs, senators and MEPs will not meet in person until mid-September at the earliest. The party has yet to name its candidate for the election, with Taoiseach Micheál Martin saying earlier this summer that he would take "soundings" from the party over the course of this month. However, Mr Kelleher said waiting until the party's pre-Oireachtas think-in in September to meet would be a mistake. He has written to the party's chairman Brendan Smith to ask that a meeting be convened. 'To my mind, this is too late in the day for the people who will ultimately be tasked with selecting a party candidate to meet to discuss the issue. 'In my opinion, Fianna Fáil, the largest party in the Dáil, the Seanad and in local government, should be actively involved in either running its own candidate or facilitating a candidate that represents our values and beliefs as a political movement,' said Mr Kelleher. The Fianna Fáil parliamentary party will decide the party's candidate, it is understood, but some have raised concerns about how much time they would have to run a campaign if that does not happen until the middle of next month. Party sources pointed to the fact that the Fine Gael candidate - either sitting MEP Sean Kelly or former social protection minister Heather Humphreys - and the only candidate currently with the requisite support to be on the ballot, Galway West independent TD Catherine Connolly, are well established names. "If we want to run someone like Mary McAleese, we need time to introduce them to the public, especially if Heather (Humphreys) is the candidate," one TD said. "It is going to be very tough if that person has no name recognition themselves." The party has not put forward a candidate for the presidency since 1997, when Mary McAleese would go on to win, but given its position as the largest party in the Oireachtas, TDs and senators believe there should be a Fianna Fáil candidate on the ballot. Mary Hanafin, a member of the Brian Cowen government which was in power until 2011, sent an email to the parliamentary party asking for support in seeking a nomination, but many within the party were quick to reject that notion. Earlier this month, Mr Martin ruled himself out of the race, saying he was committed to leading the Government. "No disrespect to the presidency or anything, but I gave commitments to the people that I would serve in Dail Éireann for the next five years and that is what I'm going to do." He said Fianna Fáil would decide on what it would do in the presidential election in the coming weeks, and he was 'taking soundings' from the parliamentary party on the matter.


RTÉ News
20 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Breaking Seán Kelly to seek Fine Gael nomination for presidency
Fine Gael MEP Seán Kelly has announced he will seek the Fine Gael nomination to contest the Presidential Election. Mr Kelly said he believed the "time is right" to put himself forward, in light of the changed circumstances following Mairead McGuinness' decision to withdraw from the race, and after discussing it with family and supporters. Ms McGuinness said last week that she was stepping aside due to health concerns. Mr Kelly announced his decision to seek the party's nomination on RTÉ's Morning Ireland programme. "As someone who has devoted my life to serving communities across Ireland, as a teacher, as president of the GAA, and for the past 16 years as MEP for Ireland South, I am confident that I can represent the country with integrity, inclusiveness, and a commitment to our communities. "To be entrusted with that honour would be the greatest privilege of my life," Mr Kelly said in a statement. Mr Kelly said he looks forward to the nomination process and any contest that might follow. Nominations for the party's presidential candidate reopen at midday today and will close at midday on 2 September. The decision came following a meeting of the Fine Gael Executive Council last night. Tánaiste Simon Harris said the decision to reopen nominations will enable the party to have a candidate in place by mid-September. Heather Humphreys is believed to be reconsidering a presidential bid after having ruled herself out of contention earlier this year. Several TDs have expressed support for a potential run by Ms Humphreys. Former Fine Gael MEP Frances Fitzgerald said Ms Humphreys would have her "full support" if she were to run for Áras an Uachtaráin. In May, Ms Humphreys said while she had given it serious consideration, she wished to spend more time with family and friends and pursue other things. MEP calls for FF to convene meeting over presidential candidate Meanwhile, Fianna Fáil MEP Billy Kelleher has called for a meeting of the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party to be convened "urgently" to discuss running a candidate in the Presidential Election. Mr Kelleher said Fianna Fáil should either run its own candidate or support a candidate that represents the party's values. "In my opinion, Fianna Fáil, the largest party in the Dáil, the Seanad and in local government, should be actively involved in either running its own candidate or facilitating a candidate that represents our values and beliefs as a political movement," Mr Kelleher said. He said a meeting should be convened soon as the next scheduled meeting in September would come "too late in the day". He added that he has asked the chairperson of the parliamentary party, TD Brendan Smith, to convene the meeting to discuss "this most critical of issues". Taoiseach Micheál Martin said on Sunday that his party would make its position on a candidate clear towards the end of the month, adding that Fianna Fáil would be making a "contribution" to the election.


Agriland
a day ago
- Agriland
Senator calls on DAFM to reopen 'Forgotten Farmers' scheme
An Aontú senator has criticised the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) for the way in which the "long-awaited" Long Established Young Farmers scheme has been handled. Senator Sarah O'Reilly has said that the application window was open for "just two weeks in the middle of summer". Applications for the 'Forgotten Farmers' scheme closed on Wednesday, August 13 at 5:00p.m, according to DAFM. Senator O'Reilly said: "Blink and you'd miss it, and the reality is many farmers have. This scheme was years in the making, yet the department opened applications for only a fortnight in August when many farmers are at their busiest. "I have already been contacted by constituents who simply did not realise the scheme had opened, only to discover that they had now missed the deadline," O'Reilly added. The Aontú senator said that she raised the matter directly with DAFM on behalf of farmers. She said: "These farmers have been waiting for recognition and fairness for over a decade. To give them a mere two-week window at the height of summer and then not have any answers for those who, understandably, missed it is disgraceful. "The department must immediately reopen applications and ensure that no eligible farmer is excluded simply because of poor communication and planning." "Forgotten Farmers deserve better than to be forgotten once again. I am calling on the minister to extend the deadline, communicate clearly with all affected farmers, and ensure that this scheme finally delivers for those who have been left behind for far too long," Senator O'Reilly added. Separately, Clare County Council has said that it is complementing its hedge cutting programme this autumn by facilitating landowners and community groups in maintaining hedgerows throughout Co. Clare. The scheme will also adopt a management regime, in keeping with biodiversity considerations. ccording to Clare County Council, the Community Hedge Cutting Grant Scheme was the "first of its kind" to be developed in Ireland when it was piloted in 2013. This year (2025), the scheme will see €25,000 provided to cut hedges on the local road network over the coming autumn and winter. Clare County Council is inviting applications from communities and groups before September 30, 2025.