Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is my strong view that climate change, rather than being a negative, offers huge opportunities for the economy. As a country, we should be embracing the green technology sector. My fear is that the coverage of climate change is all about the negatives and the things we have to do to pull everything back. I think there are a lot of positives which we could try to tap into as part of a whole-of-Government approach.

The Minister mentioned the EIB earlier. I am mindful of the success of the agricultural cashflow support loan scheme established with the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland. It was hugely successful scheme which allowed farmers working capital and replaced some unsustainable short-term credit facilities. It was also an alternative to merchant credit. The biggest issue with it was that it was so oversubscribed, which, in itself, is proof that it was a success. What sectors does the Minister see benefiting from EIB low interest rate support? What might it look like if we were to be successful in accessing more supports?