Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The discussions have been based mainly on the CAP programme. With many farmers' incomes under severe pressure currently, we need to protect the family farm. In recent years the way a number of CAP programmes have been rolled out has meant that in many cases farmers are forced out of their family farms to go to work. Is there anyone listening at all? I hope there is because I have a number of questions I would like answered. It basically forces the farmer to seek employment to pay the bills.

I will keep my questions short because Deputy Ó Cuív mentioned much of what I wanted to cover. Under the new CAP programme, will the single farm payment be capped at €50,000 to €55,000? The people I meet feel the savings should be distributed to the farmers below this level if that is the case.

There is some rumour afoot that farmers, who had to leave their farms to take up employment outside their farms to pay the bills, will be punished under this new CAP programme. We need clarity and assurance that these farmers will not be punished if they have employment outside their farms. It is detrimental currently. Many of them are suffering serious debt and trying to pay off their debts.

Arising from the new CAP negotiations we need to have better regulation on imports in our beef, dairy, pork or lamb coming into the EU. All sort of questionable beef is being imported from outside the EU. It is important to protect those producing the beef, dairy, pork and lamb. The meat or any other farm produce coming into the EU needs to be properly regulated.

There should not just be regulation of one sector, but all sectors.

I said I would not hog the meeting, but my thoughts on the shambles made of LEADER are well known. Unfortunately, we have had to move on. LEADER was a great programme for rural programmes, but now it is the last thing mentioned at any meeting I attend. No one even knows it exists. That is unfortunate, as there are still a few groups picking up funding. The playing pitch has changed, though, and the Department should go back to the old model, which Europe praised Ireland for, of local LEADER companies. Politics has got in the way, unfortunately, so I am afraid that will not happen. If so, it will be to the detriment of people in every rural community throughout the country, including in my west Cork constituency, who have in the past worked closely with LEADER groups from start to finish on delivering their respective projects. That option is not there anymore. We in west Cork now have to go to the Aran Islands to discuss a LEADER project. I mean no disrespect to those on the islands, but that is far-fetched. Unfortunately, the powers that be have allowed it to happen. We must re-examine the issue.