Mayo farmer appointed chair of commonage committee

THE Minister for Agriculture, Michael Creed, has announced the appointment of Mayo man Padraig Gibbons as the new chair of the independent Commonage Implementation Committee.

Welcoming the appointment, the minister noted that Mr. Gibbons has experience of all aspects of the agricultural sector, and has previously chaired the independent appeals committees established to deal with both the operation of the Disadvantaged Areas Scheme and the review of the Land Parcel Identification System.

Padraig Gibbons is a prominent figure in Irish agriculture, being a former president of the Irish Cooperative Organisation Society (ICOS), the coordinating body for the cooperative movement, and a member of the ICOS board. He is a former chairperson and current board member of Aurivo and a member of the boards of Teagasc and the National Dairy Council.

Mr. Gibbons will be joined on the committee by nominees from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the Department of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and the Gaeltacht Affairs and Teagasc.

The committee, whose work on outstanding cases will commence shortly, will have a role in examining cases where there may be disagreement or difficulties in reaching agreement between active shareholders in the preparation of a GLAS Commonage Management Plan.