Mr. Tom Moran:

I will do that. I will deal first with the easy point. We are aware of the Teagasc event tomorrow morning.

We will be represented. It is an excellent endeavour. The point about climate change is an excellent one because in an expansionary phase, looking at a climate could be seen as putting a cap. That has to be an issue and is being considered.

The Food Harvest 2020 high level monitoring group which is working extremely well has commissioned an environmental impact statement on the effect of the targets. What it means is that we will not be reducing output but will increase the carbon output from the sector. Therefore, there will be a greater demand for mitigating measures to be introduced. The key point is that there is a direct correlation between high productivity and efficient production and the output of carbon. That means that the more efficient one becomes the lesser the carbon output. If Food Harvest 2020 appears to be driving towards greater efficiency it has inbuilt in it a positive carbon element. It does raise that challenge. We would put that challenge firmly side by side with the other great debate. The climate debate cannot be divorced from the food output debate. I am absolutely adamant about that. That is a view that has been expressed firmly by the Minister at an informal Council meeting in Denmark. One cannot be divorced from the other. If the population increases, as it will, and the figures are daunting, demand for food will increase. That issue has got to be addressed in the same context as the carbon issue.