Tánaiste: 'You've come for a head and you're not getting one'
Tánaiste Simon Harris has emphatically told the Dáil that the government will not remove Larry Murrin as chair of Bord Bia.
There have been calls from farm organisations and some politicians to have Murrin removed from his position over the fact that his company Dawn Farms sources a small percentage of beef from Brazil.
Farmer representatives have claimed that this makes his position of chair at the government-funded body which is tasked with promoting Irish produce "untenable".
Yesterday (Thursday, January 29) in the Dáil, Sinn Féin TD Matt Carthy told the Tánaiste: "The contradiction goes to the core of Bord Bia's credibility and farmers know it.
"Instead of addressing the substance of the issue, ministers instead have resorted to dismissive language, talking about 'witch hunts' 'hypes' and suggesting that farmers are somehow doing their own sector a disservice by speaking out.
"All farm organisations are unequivocal; Larry Murrin's position is untenable; confidence has been lost; and he has to go," Deputy Carthy said.
Tánaiste
In response to the opposition calls, Tánaiste Simon Harris responded: "We will not remove the chair [Larry Murrin]. You've come for a head and you're not getting one and that is the position of the Government of Ireland.
"This is a government that follows due process. This is a government that doesn't decide that protest removes people from office. This is a government that listens. This is a government that engages.
"And this is a government that believes that if people put up their hand for public service, which is what serving on a commercial semi-state board is, and makes a positive contribution, then they have the support of government."
The Tánaiste said that conflicts of interest or perceived conflicts of interest are "always important" in any government corporate structure, but stressed that it is equally important that processes are followed where people are given an opportunity for discussion.
"I believe there is information and complexity here that is being deliberately overlooked and possibly even supressed in terms of your [Sinn Féin] presentation of this situation," Harris added.
"Mr. Murrin appeared before the [Bord Bia] board last week; that's the right thing to do. He answered all the questions that the board members had and he had the support of the overwhelming majority of the board.
"I understand that he's happy to appear at the Oireachtas Agriculture Committee and he should, because again, that's an important process and it's the right place, quite frankly, for the people's representatives...to have an opportunity to probe, to ask questions, to discuss and to see, beyond social media posts, and kind of gut... whether there's actually an issue here," the Tánaiste said.
Simon Harris added that a date for that appearance at the committee is currently being arranged, potentially for next week, which he is hopeful will be firmed up in the coming days.
He outlined that Murrin has presided over Bord Bia during a time of massive growth in Bord Bia and in exports and questioned whether or not that counts for anything.
While the figures for 2025 are not yet available, the Tánaiste said: "I'd be surprised if they don't exceed €20 billion... that's a remarkable achievement."
The Tánaiste agreed with Deputy Carthy that "there are more important issues we should be discussing" such as bluetongue, the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and "the fact that significant parts of the country are under water".
He implored for the agriculture committee to be allowed to "do its job" and reiterated that the government's position on Larry Murrin's credibility as Bord Bia chair has not changed.
