Kevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I have very few questions, surprisingly, because the paper was very detailed. Professor Bates is one of the few who have been arguing that the targets outlined in the heads of the Bill are sufficient. What is our strongest argument for appealing to the European Union to grant Ireland a special exemption regarding the EU target?

We seem to be using the phrase "food security" constantly. Since Ireland at the high end with regard to agriculture and food production, it is really not a matter of food security for Europe. We are dealing with a food product that would appeal to the more affluent end of the market rather than the kinds of products about which we might have been talking in respect of food security after the Second World War. The phrase "food security" in the European context is not really relevant to what Ireland is producing.