I will not need ten. I think everything has been said that needs to be said. I welcome some of the updates the Minister of State has provided. I am positive and hopeful that the recommendations will be taken into account. It is important that what has been put forward in this report is heeded. There are many reports from committees and everywhere else and many recommendations, and the work does not end when the report is finished and published. I failed to mention dog wardens and it is important to give them a ment…

I also welcome the opportunity to speak on this motion. As someone who has grown up in a rural community, who still lives in a rural community and who would live nowhere else in the world, I know the importance of proper planning and getting planning right for our rural communities. As my colleague Deputy Ó Broin said, the housing crisis is not unique to our urban areas and larger towns. It is just as much a crisis in our rural communities. We need to get planning right for our rural communities. If we do not get i…

I also want to raise the importance of including in the legislation the cost of production to the primary producer. I know the Minister took issue with the term "foodstuffs" when my colleague, Deputy Carthy discussed this with him on Committee Stage. He will see from our amendment on Report Stage that we have changed that to "agricultural and food products" to try to make it more specific and base it on the definitions that are set out in the Bill. It is very much about transparency and fairness. I see no reason th…

I have a comment specifically on the initial point I made, which was discussed on Committee Stage. The Minister's issue was that the term "foodstuffs" was too broad and that it would not be possible to look at the costs of all produce. We accept that. Hence, we have changed it to "agriculture and food products", which are defined in the Bill as a specific and precise list. This limits that term and deals with the issue the Minister raised on Committee Stage. I want to ask the Minister to respond specifically on tha…

I move amendment No. 9: In page 10, line 9, to delete “regulator” and substitute “rialálaí”. This amendment was discussed on Committee Stage and I am bringing it forward again. It addresses a concern that has been raised by the Joint Committee on the Irish Language, Gaeltacht and the Irish-speaking Community about the need to put into practice the promotion of the use of the Irish language in names that are given to official bodies. This amendment is to delete "regulator" and substitute "rialálaí" throughout this l…

We could tweak it.

I blame Deputy Ó Snodaigh for not having our Irish in order for that amendment.

I am joking. That is fine.

I move amendment No. 10: In page 11, between lines 17 and 18, to insert the following: “(2) The regulator shall collate the costs associated with the production of different agricultural and food products in order to determine a cost-of-production, and publish reports on such on an annual basis.”.

I move amendment No. 11: In page 11, line 19, after “to” to insert “the full breadth of.” This amendment was discussed on Committee Stage and the Minister said that he would reflect on it. It involves a concern that has been raised by farmers and farming organisations. The definition in the Bill is too narrow as it only relates to business-to-business relationships and does not deal with the business-to-consumer relationship. Farming organisations have been clear in expressing their disappointment about it. It is r…

I will withdraw the amendment.

I move amendment No. 14: In page 11, between lines 28 and 29, to insert the following: “(d) the regulator shall be authorised to seek from businesses within the agri-food supply chain any data impacting upon price and margins considered necessary, including— (i) prices paid and received, (ii) margin, (iii) financial and accounting data, (iv) throughput of agricultural produce, (v) data in relation to policy and procedure, (vi) employment status, and (vii) salary, and (e) data referenced under paragraph (d) may be i…

The Minister did not refer to amendment No. 19, which is in this grouping, but he had indicated on Committee Stage that he would be willing to consider it if amendment No. 14 passed. It will ensure the regulator will report to the Minister within 12 months of its establishment, report on its ability to acquire data and make any appropriate recommendation to ensure the regulator will be empowered to access or seize any such data it requires to meet its obligations. Will the Minister update us on the proposal? He ind…

I raise the case of Robert Pether, which I have previously raised in this House. Mr. Pether has now spent two years in a Baghdad prison after being imprisoned following a dispute between his employer and the Iraqi Government. In March last year, the United Nations working group on arbitrary detention released a report on his detention. The group found it to be in breach of international law and arbitrary. It called for his immediate and unconditional release. I have been advised by the Department of Foreign Affairs…

Yesterday, young people from across Ireland, who are involved in Macra na Feirme, began a 14-hour walk to Government Buildings from Athy. They are taking a stand for rural Ireland. For many of us born and raised there, there is nowhere else we would rather live. In fact, there is nowhere else we see our futures. Macra, in its campaign, is raising eight key issues around access to affordable housing and to healthcare and also the issue for young farmers about quotas on accessing supports. Today, young people are sen…

But the services are not-----

Does the Minister intend to introduce an emergency package of financial supports for the sheep sector. He will be aware, as we all are, that sheep farmers have been calling out for supports for some time now and they have not been forthcoming. Is there an opportunity to seek emergency funding from the Brexit adjustment reserve?

I thank the Minister for his kind wishes. I appreciate them and I too look forward to working constructively with him and the Minister of State, Senator Hackett. Of course, the importance of the sector is well-known and that is always the first line. It is important and we should acknowledge it. However, the sector is under huge pressure. It has been seven weeks since the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association, ICSA, held a protest outside the House. I met sheep farmers that day who told me they are to the wall…

Some of those schemes, such as ACRES, are welcome and will make some difference. However, they are more focused on the environment as opposed to production. The fact of the matter is that monitoring is not good enough at this point when sheep farmers are telling the Minister that they are in crisis and the sector is in crisis. The clear impact of Brexit is there. If the Minister looks at the trade deals that have been done by England with New Zealand and Australia, he will see they are both big sheep-producing coun…

We know there are numerous changes coming to farm schemes this year. One of them, which has been described as the biggest one by the Minister's Department, is the change to the satellite inspections and how that will work with the new mandatory area monitoring system. Might the Minister be able to tell us a little more about how he sees that working and, particularly, the impact it will have for farmers on the ground and how they will have to engage with the new system?