The Government should appoint a senior minister to look after food safety, Progressive Democrats senator Mr John Dardis said yesterday.
Mr Dardis said the footand-mouth crisis showed a minister for food with full Cabinet rank was needed.
"Now is the time to display the political will to tackle the food safety issue for once and for all. What better way to do this than to have a minister at the Cabinet table specifically dealing with the issue?"
The foot-and-mouth crisis had brought into sharp focus the huge importance of the food industry to the Irish economy, and it sent out the wrong signals to have a junior minister dealing with the industry.
"What we need is political determination from the Government to create the safest regime possible for all food products," he said.