I thank Deputy O'Hara for raising the important matter of the EU-Mercosur trade agreement. The Government has been very clear about Ireland’s concerns in relation to the EU-Mercosur agreement and has expressed these consistently over a number of years, particularly in relation to the agreement's potential impact on the beef sector, the strength of its climate and sustainability commitments, and the production standards enforced by Mercosur countries. Since I took up the role of Minister in January of last year, I h…

I can go back over all of the times I have raised my opposition to the Mercosur deal in the AGRIFISH Council and in bilateral meetings. I have also been very frank and clear on that in my public utterances, on the floor of this House, in Brussels and in media interviews I have done on the issue. An element of the Deputy's question should be directed towards the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade. This is a broader Government issue and trade deals are not decided by the Minister for agriculture, although I do sp…

Before I talk about anything I am doing next, the first thing I have to do is to counter what the Deputy just said on the floor of this House. It is complete false. I have been clear on this issue. At a meeting of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council in Brussels on 27 January 2025, when I was four days into the job, I spoke about how I was opposed to the Mercosur trade deal and articulated that perspective very clearly. There were meetings on 24 February 2025 and 24 March 2025. On 23 June 2025, there was a meeting…

I join with Deputy O'Shea in extending my sympathies to Deputy Burke and his family on the passing of his mother-in-law. Gender equality in agriculture is a priority of mine and it is included in the programme for Government. Food Vision 2030 also recognises the importance of gender balance to the long-term sustainable future of the sector and committed to holding a national dialogue on women in agriculture. The dialogue, which took place in 2023, explored gender equality across the sector, with the outcomes and re…

I thank the Deputy. It is timely this year because 2026 has been identified by the United Nations as the International Year of the Woman Farmer. My Department recently held a conference to launch the year in Ireland and to celebrate International Women's Day. I was delighted to announce the new International Year of the Woman Farmer ambassador, who will represent Ireland in Irish agriculture. She will raise awareness of existing supports and highlight issues that are important to women farmers. Further events for t…

I agree with the Deputy. As he can see from my earlier response, it is not about on intervention that will change things and move the dial. It is a series of different things. When I looked at this previously when I was a Minister of State, the feedback from female farmers was that male-dominated knowledge transfer groups were a challenge. Having female-only knowledge transfer groups in certain instances has worked really well. There are lots of small, practical things we can do that can make a difference. I spent …

I know how important milling is to Laois and beyond-----

As is the tillage sector. The tillage sector is an integral part of Irish farming, producing high-quality animal feed and bedding for the livestock sector and ingredients for the food and drink industry. The sector makes a significant contribution to the Irish economy, as the Deputy knows, estimated at €1.9 billion per annum over the 2018 to 2022 period. It is also important in terms of employment and is estimated to support over 11,000 full-time equivalent jobs. This Government is committed to growing the area und…

I thought Deputy Stanley was going to break into a bar of Trudi Lalor's "Lovely Laois" for a minute. I am well aware that some of the best tillage land in the country is in Laois because it is right beside Kildare. We have it too. The Deputy has many constituents, as I have, who are dependent, who are tillage farmers and are very worried about the future. They have had three really tough years due to a mixture of bad weather, income challenges and pressures and high input costs and low margin prices. At its heart h…

I completely concur. We should never have lost the sugar beet industry. It was a detrimental blow to those of us in south Kildare, Laois and beyond who made very good money out of the campaign every year in delivering it into Carlow, as they did in Tuam, Thurles and Mallow. I take the points regarding Alan Ahearne's report on board. It is why the Government has invested and supported Irish agriculture to the extent it has, with record amounts of funding to meet the last CAP plan. The Irish Government was not found …

The board of Bord Bia met on 2 March to discuss proposals to resolve the situation whereby Bord Bia’s offices were being occupied by protestors. Following that meeting the board issued an agreed statement. This statement noted that the terms of reference of an independent governance review which I had proposed were agreed by the board, and that the protest inside and outside the offices would be stood down. As agreed, my Department is now commissioning an independent review of Bord Bia’s governance framework. The r…

The end of April.

It will be finished by the end of April.

The reason we are talking about the end of April – which is both a very tight timeline and ambitious – is because it is something I want to bring to a conclusion. There needs to be a lot of honesty in the debate. I agree with Deputy Kenny that we need to reflect on everyone’s fiduciary duties when they sign up to a State board. A great deal of responsibility comes with that, and that applies to every member of a board, not just the chairperson. On the points about farmer representation and the farmer point of view,…

That is it exactly. We want to move on, but we want to ensure that as we do so, there is a clear understanding of the highly integrated nature of food trade globally. We export 90% of our food and drink. It is really important that our farmers clearly understand that. The whole tenor of the debate over the five-week period focused on the 10% consumed in Ireland, understandably, because it is very important market in terms of sentiment and for Irish consumers as well. However, we cannot lose sight of the fact that B…

I thank the Senator for raising this really important matter and assure him and all Members of the Seanad of my commitment to improving the traceability of dogs. Effective traceability is fundamental to safeguarding dog welfare, supporting responsible ownership and strengthening accountability where incidents occur. The Senator referenced the Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association, INHFA,. I was in Donegal last Thursday, which is a long way from Kerry, where the association launched a campaign on sheep worrying …

Sheep worrying is devastating. Its impact on animal welfare and farming families who suffer as a result of their sheep being attacked by dogs is devastating and goes way beyond the financial implications of a such loss to their economic model of farming. It cuts to the heart of what a farmer is as a custodian of the land and a minder of the animals in his or her care. The reason it is particularly frustrating is it is always preventable. We know of instances where pet owners have been approached by farmers who told…

I thank Senators for putting this really important issue on the business of the Seanad today. I am delighted to have the opportunity to engage with the Upper House on the dynamic situation regarding bluetongue in Ireland. As colleagues know, bluetongue is a viral disease, caused by the bluetongue virus, that can result in severe clinical symptoms in ruminant species, including cattle, sheep, goats, deer and camelids such as alpacas and llamas. There are different serotypes of the bluetongue virus, the most common f…

I thank colleagues for raising a variety of different points. I am going to make a little room. We were making notes as we went along. I will endeavour to get to everyone's questions and respond to the different points that were raised. Points that have been raised regarding the confirmation of the presence of bluetongue serotype 3, BTV-3, in Ireland. It poses a not insignificant challenge for us. I remain acutely aware of how worrying this is for farmers. All colleagues across the House have highlighted that. That…

That is the point the Senator was making and I understand that. My officials understand the urgency regarding North-South trade. Senators Daly and Brady and others have referred to the show period that is coming up. That is a big challenge. An awful lot of important trade happens both ways. There is urgency about finding a solution to North-South trade. EU regulations dictate the derogations that can be applied. These options need to be carefully considered. There is no option without risk and it is important to ma…