Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There is €313 million. If the ratio of co-funding is 53:47 we should seek to maximise it, regardless of where we put it.

We had a good engagement last week with officials from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and National Parks and Wildlife Service, which if I recall correctly Mr. Gunning and others attended. I believe the discussion forum should involve the farming organisations, Comhairle na Tuaithe and others.

As suggested by Deputy Kyne we should not fiddle with the issues that do not require to be fiddled with. Under-stocking has been identified as a big problem. They over-egged it in the last plan. Other issues such as burning and deer and vegetation management need to be addressed. Common sense must prevail and people should not be suggesting it is not possible to burn after 1 March and so on. We have to fix the problem and need practical solutions if we are to do so.

We coined a phrase during our proceedings last week - "common sense for commonages". That is all we want.

We are happy to facilitate engagement. It will boil down to good agricultural and environment conditions. The farmer is the key, which was acknowledged by Dr. Andrew Bleasdale and Mr. Paud Evans and others, but he or she will only play a part if it makes economic sense. Farmers will not do it for recreational purposes. The mission statement of the Wicklow Uplands Council states it is to accommodate all those who live, work and recreate in the uplands. Everybody must believe he or she gets something from it. If the farmer is a key player in providing good agricultural and environment conditions, GAECs for the commonage areas, he or she must know it makes economic sense. One can do this under many schemes, for example, return on the stock, enhanced payment for diverse breeds or agri-environment schemes, but it must make economic sense.

I thank the IFA representatives for attending and engaging with the committee. The committee has given a commitment to work on these issues. We will get only one bite but there is cross-party determination to get this issue right. We need to ensure we make the most of the opportunity presented by the Pillar 2 negotiations.