When the Minister was on this side of the House, he joined our party in supporting a resolution that called for the then Government to reject the EU-Mercosur trade agreement. He did so for all the right reasons. The programme for Government rowed back on that and committed to a review of the deal. Anyone who has examined the agreement from an environmental or Irish agricultural viewpoint knows that it could be devastating. Will the Minister update the House on his Department's work on the deal in the interests of I…

I am disappointed by the Minister's response. He did not accept the exact same speech when it was read to him by his Fine Gael predecessor when he was in opposition. Last week, we learned that 11,088 sq. km of forest had been destroyed in Brazil between the start of August 2019 and the end of July 2020 to make way for beef ranches. That beef is being produced at a very low cost because of the mechanism Brazil uses and it is being exported to the EU. Substantial quantities of Brazilian beef are already being sold in…

The Minister knows what the outcome of the report will be, namely, that the deal will be a bad one for Ireland. He also knows what the deal's benefits are. They accrue to the German car manufacturing sector. That is why the Irish Government will not stand up and say that the deal needs to be rejected. I believe the Government's position is that environmental concerns primarily will lead to such a public outcry that the EU will eventually have to abandon the deal. The Government will ensure that the deal is rejected…

So was Fianna Fáil when it was in opposition.

Yes, it was.

Fianna Fáil Senators sat-----

I thank the Acting Chairman, Deputy Farrell, for the latitude he has extended to us and commend Deputy Martin Browne on tabling this question. The Minister will know my views. The fact that responses to requests for freedom of information are being so heavily redacted sends out all the wrong signals. These are matters that should not embarrass anybody. Certainly, the factories should be eager that these reports are published to give the public the knowledge. My question follows on from Deputy Browne's. At present, …

Deputy Funchion is unable to be here to take this question. The Minister knows that if farming is to have a future, then we need to have a strong and robust agricultural education sector. Teagasc colleges and other such outlets provide an important output to train our next generation of farmers to meet the challenges they will face. They need to get the same support as all other students, however. How does the Minister plan to bring that about?

I also commend Macra na Feirme for highlighting this issue and ensuring it would not go away. The Minister knows I am an incredibly positive person and always welcome positive developments. I did so last week when it was announced that additional supports would be made available. I actually commended the Minister on his role in that. I expected he would play some role in the funding of it, however. Only subsequently did I learn that the funding the Minister outlined is coming from Teagasc's existing budget so there…

The Minister did not answer my question on those students who will not receive supports under the package that has been announced. We need to have a holistic view of agricultural education. At present, there are disparities. It is not that there are too many agencies involved, it is that they do not appear to be working together. The Minister for Education has simply dismissed concerns of the Irish Agricultural Science Teachers Association, which has raised genuine concerns. The Minister for Further and Higher Educ…

The carbon tax is a fraud that is being perpetrated against ordinary workers and families. Scandalously, it is being perpetrated in the name of environmentalism. There is nothing related to environmentalism with regard to the carbon tax. The carbon tax is simply another revenue-generating measure. It would be helpful if people before the House were honest and actually set out what exactly the carbon tax is. The carbon tax increase on fuel, added on budget night, has done nothing for the environment. The only net re…

The programme for Government commits the Government to a review of the Mercosur trade deal. Many farmers fear that review is simply a delaying tactic on the part of Government. This week we learned that deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon surged in the past year. Over the past 12 months a total of 11,000 sq. km of forest have been destroyed. Most of this forest is destroyed to make way for beef ranches. That beef is expected to supplement or remove Irish beef from supermarket shelves across Europe if the EU Merco…

This issue was debated at length at a meeting of the Joint Committee on Agriculture and the Marine last week. The debate was comprehensive. During that meeting I put on the record, as I will today, that Sinn Féin absolutely supports maintaining vibrant horse racing and greyhound racing sectors in Ireland. We recognise their value, in particular to many rural communities, and the great contribution they make to local economies which are, in many other respects, bereft of investment. That is not to say that we suppor…

It would have been more appropriate if the Minister had answered a single question put to him.

As Deputy Martin Kenny said, we are here today because Fine Gael in government has a problem in regard to cronyism. It has a problem of doing favours with insiders. It has a big problem with being held to account when caught out. This is the second time in three weeks that a Fine Gael member of Government has had to come before the Dáil to answer questions about his or her conduct. First up was the Tánaiste and Fine Gael leader to answer for leaking confidential information to his political ally when he was Taoisea…

If I may make a point of order before the debate ceases, the revelation that the Tánaiste indicated to his newly appointed Minister for Justice that a particular individual would make a good judge-----

Will you allow me to get to it? The Minister's clarification that this informed her position and her consideration of the appointment sets out in clear terms that we need an urgent statement of clarification----

I wish to make a formal proposal-----

Two weeks before-----

I thank the Ceann Comhairle's office for selecting this issue and for allowing me to be part of the debate, albeit with a few problems along the way. That this situation has been allowed to get to this last-minute point is deeply concerning. It is my view that the matter can be easily resolved with political will. What we need to ensure is that transport management CPCs that were issued in the North of Ireland or in Britain will be recognised post Brexit. In terms of the residency clause referred to by Deputy Darre…