Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The ICBF has put an emphasis on communication but, really, that is only a small part of it. Whichever way it is communicated, the message is the same. Farmers signed up to SCEP in good faith. Mr. Coughlan stated the input costs have risen. Suckler farmers need a scheme more than ever and they need one that pays them and treats them right. They signed up in good faith and the rug has been pulled from under them. The goalposts have changed and, from reading Mr. Coughlan's opening statement, it is highly likely they will change again. He spoke about future-proofing. How can any farmer sign up in good faith and then have the rug pulled from under them? Mr. Coughlan has acknowledged that issue but it does not seem as though anything is going to be done about it. Whatever way the message is communicated, it is the same, and farmers feel very aggrieved about that.

My time is short, so I will move to questions on the ICBF board. How are board members appointed? Are minutes kept of meetings held with stakeholders? How is it determined how many board members each representative organisation gets to have? How many members of the board have a suckler or beef background?