I welcome the Minister. I have eight minutes. I do not need eight minutes but if it had been a year ago, eight hours would not have been enough. As the Minister quite rightly said, the talking is done. He has delivered, and now it is about action and what needs to be done over the next three years. I acknowledge the role the Minister played in it, and thank and congratulate him on achieving the derogation. It was a fluid situation. I am a veteran of two agriculture committees and we got a bit of a slating the last …

It is a catch-22.

There was a bit of a misunderstanding. It was down to the goodwill of the Tánaiste, and I thank him for his engagement. We spoke here the last day and he had to leave the Chamber. He told me he would deal with it today on Report Stage. With that in mind, rather than actually speaking on the amendment then, I said I was withdrawing it with a view to bringing it back today. Apparently, if it is not discussed, it cannot be brought back, but I appreciate the fact we have been given an opportunity to speak on it today. …

I welcome the Minister. When I saw the comprehensive army he brought with him from Naas, I was glad that we are on the same team and that I was not going to take him to task. I warmly welcome the Bill. We have discussed it at length among ourselves, within our group and whatever. It is a no-brainer. When it was announced first that I and Senator Ryan were going to be the Fianna Fáil representatives on the higher education committee, we had numerous requests from stakeholders for meetings and we met them together. T…

I would not like to think that Limerick would become top heavy in that particular institute in any future spending. We will differ on that one and we will fight our own parochial arguments on it. As the Minister will be aware, I would be from a practical background. The examples I will give the Minister are where I see it is really necessary. While I hear what Senator Tully is saying about buying land, etc., I will use the example I have used on numerous occasions when we were dealing with apprenticeships in the hi…

Next Tuesday.

I welcome the decision of the European nitrates committee yesterday to pass the extension of the nitrates derogation for our agriculture sector. I ask the Leader to organise a debate in the new year on the nitrates derogation, specifically in respect of water quality. I asked for two Ministers to come here before and I do not want to make a habit of it. I will let the Leader make the call but I think it is important that it would be the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage who would take that debate …

I move recommendation No. 3: In page 99, between lines 13 and 14, to insert the following: “(2) Section 46(1)(d) of the Principal Act is amended, with effect from 1 January 2026, by the substitution of “4.5 per cent” for “4.8 per cent”.”. I will withdraw this recommendation with a view to reintroducing it on Report Stage.

I second the proposed Bill. I compliment Senator Rabbitte who, as she very eloquently described, lives so close to the River Shannon herself. Not taking from her explanations, I lived in Kilbeggan, which is a long way from the River Shannon, but I am on the banks of one of its tributary rivers. The Inny, the Suck and the Brosna are the three main tributaries of the River Shannon. I live very close to the River Brosna and what happens on the Shannon affects us that far up. The Minister of State will be well aware of…

Hear, hear.

By way of clarification, if a vote is called now, is it a recall bell or a vote bell? Not everybody is here.

Now it is a recall bell. Will there be another two and one the vote you are now calling?

That is even better.

May I take it from the last comment that the amendment is not being pressed?

I second the proposal by Senator Rabbitte that No. 12 be taken before No. 1. I welcome the inclusion of this Bill on the Order Paper and compliment and thank Senator Rabbitte, who did all the spade work on it. I am honoured to have my name attached to the Bill. I was late to the party, but I am delighted. I live on the banks of the River Brosna, which is a tributary of the Shannon. It is vital that the legislation is updated from the late 1920s or early 1930s version to reflect modern-day Ireland and the fact that …

I second the motion.

I thank Senator Casey for allowing me to share time with him. I want to raise two points with the Minister of State. In fact, it is one issue that has two anomalies on the back of the budget. I refer to the changes to the flat-rate VAT for farmers. I will not get into trying to explain the flat-rate VAT. It is a figure agreed between the Minister and Revenue based on macroeconomic data from the CSO. It changes and is reviewed. In the budget it was reduced from 5.1% to 4.5%. The anomaly is that there is also a flat …

That Revenue could make it as easy as possible to facilitate them in those circumstances. The livestock VAT rate of 4.8% has to become equal to the 4.5% flat-rate VAT, because that is a serious anomaly.

The rate for livestock is separate. That is the problem.

I highlight the issue we are being bombarded with at the moment on every media outlet, including on television and radio, the fact that we have Black Friday on Friday, and the devastating effect this is having on our local rural communities and our local rural retail outlets. Some of the statistics on online shopping are startling and actually frightening. It has been proven that 85% of Internet users do shop online and 40% of those purchases are made outside the EU. A really startling figure is that over €12 milli…