Mr. Kenneth O'Brien:

Numbers-wise it seems to be throughout Ireland. It is even enough throughout the country. There are many in Cork and Kerry. We have not been in contact with them all. We have been in contact with most of them.

Going back to what Deputy Fitzmaurice said, farmers are on varying levels of payments. When I went to the bank to get a loan, the first thing I was asked for was information on the single farm payment. When the bank officials saw it was €780, I was laughed at and I was told I could do nothing without a single farm payment. We need a single farm payment for sustainability. According to the figures of which we are aware, 80,000 farmers in rural Ireland are over the age of 55 and 6% of farmers are under the age of 35. We also know approximately 4,000 farmers are in this scenario. I can speak for myself. I have put up an awful battle to have land included. Every other year I fought against big farmers but now it is against new entrants. We will not be able to be sustained in farming. These are family farms and it is a problem throughout rural Ireland. We cannot get funding from the banks. We feel we are being discriminated against on every side through no fault of our own. We have a green cert. I am not considered a young farmer at 33. I see people older than me, aged 39, who come home from a good job where they earn €40,000 a year, which is €800 a week, and get €300 per hectare. The lads who stayed in the game are being discriminated against.

We paid our way, including the cost of agricultural courses. When I did my course in 2001-02, it was suggested that my local college in Mountbellew would close. We were the lads who kept it open and stayed in agriculture, yet we are being discriminated against for adhering to the rules.