Mr. Phil Hogan:

I mentioned workers losing out through TTIP and I do not see environmental issues, labour mobility issues or standards with regard to food or workers' rights being in anyway diminished. We can say "No" if we are not satisfied with the fundamental rights we demand.

With regard to the issue of the European Union being a stronger global actor, later this year the Commission will present proposals for a European border and coast guard, which is effectively being put in place to strengthen Frontex, the organisation established to deal with the refugee and migration crisis.

This should, and will, occur in the context of the broader development of the European Union's capacity to be more united in relation to external action. It must be remembered that because Ireland is in Schengen, it can choose to opt in or not while other member states in the migration area of the European Union that are experiencing enormous turmoil, societally and economically because of what is happening, cannot do so. They are not able to cope. One example is Sweden, which I recently visited. There are 12,000 people per week coming through Denmark into Sweden. One can imagine the pressure this is placing on the local authorities there in the context of the speed with which they must provide housing and social services for those people and the expenditure required in that regard. It is a great challenge to us all.

Migration is the number one issue politically. When President Juncker included addressing the migration issue in his list of ten-point priorities last year people wondered why he did it. It appears he is a very far-seeing gentleman. Nobody could have foreseen the scale of this displacement of people. The migration issue and other economic and social issues will be discussed at the forthcoming summit next Sunday between the European Union and Turkey. The outcome of those discussions in terms of how it is proposed to manage the 3 million people that are displaced will be particularly important. There are a further 1 billion people displaced in Lebanon and another 1 billion people displaced in Jordan. As pointed out by many speakers today, these are issues that will be with us for many years to come. We will need a great deal of patience politically on this issue. We will also need a great deal of resources to deal with it effectively. Schengen is under pressure from that point of view. There will be a discussion in the future around a review of Schengen in the context of these issues. As mentioned by Deputy Dooley, the 160,000 people about whom we are speaking today are only the tip of the iceberg in the context of what Europe has to deal with.

I will now try to address some of the other points raised. On the point regarding young farmers, we are working with the European Investment Bank to secure more longer-term loans at reasonable rates of interest. The situation in this country in relation to the cost to people of borrowing money is uncompetitive. A similar situation applies across many member states. We are working with the European Investment Bank, on which Ireland is represented, on the creation of an agricultural fund which would provide competition and options for people. It is proposed not to create further financial bureaucracy but to utilise existing financial institutions to channel that money to the people who need it. We are prioritising restructuring of the dairy sector post-milk quota and young people who want to get into farming and forestry.

I do not propose to engage in crystal ball gazing in relation to market developments in regard to agricultural commodities as to do so would mean us being here for a long time. Suffice it to say that the difficulties being experienced in the dairy sector are likely to continue into 2016. It is my job to secure new markets in this regard. We are doing everything possible to get new markets for our dairy producers. Having lost €5.2 billion owing to the Russian ban last year, our exports in this area increased by €8.6 billion this year. We have turned the corner in relation to exports but we are not getting the same value as before.

President Juncker wrote to President Putin this week in relation to how trade relations with Russia can be normalised again. Obviously, there is a political dimension to that in terms of the sanctions having to be taken into account. Nevertheless, people in Russia, as well as in the European Union, have to be fed. The Russian people are experiencing problems because of the lack of opportunities in this area.