Mr. John Enright:

A couple of points were raised by Deputy Carthy. The first concerned supports for farmers. On that issue, when beef prices collapsed in 2019, while some supports were put in place for farmers, and we acknowledge the beef exceptional aid measure, BEAM, scheme, many farmers did not receive support for the losses they suffered. That includes many dairy farmers who had more than 40 dairy cows, which we thought was very unfair.

Ultimately, supports come down to farm income and what income farmers have from their farm enterprises. In a no-deal scenario, obviously, we would be concerned about the beef side, in particular, but there could also be a negative impact on the dairy side of things. We believe the €5 billion Brexit adjustment fund needs to directly address losses which may occur. We hope losses do not occur, but we hope farmers will be properly compensated if they do, because this problem has not been caused by farmers and they should not take the hit for it. We made the point that there was a great deal of support for people further up the supply chain. The reality, however, is that any losses which occur will eventually be passed down to the primary producers and we will take the hit as farmers. Deputy Carthy also asked me about the growth in agrifood exports of 63% since 2010. In 2018, exports of food to the UK amounted to €4.8 billion. Growth in exports to the UK will continue, although there will probably be better growth outside it. We cannot, however, understate the importance of the UK market for our farmers, whether they are in the beef, sheep and-or dairy sectors.

Turning to ferry capacity, our deputy president addressed that issue. The Chairman asked us about our contact with the shipping companies. We have been in constant contact with the live exporters in that regard. The major concern is that if there are delays across the land bridge, lorries will go direct to the Continent and then there is the question of whether that will impact on capacity during the key period from February to late April. We simply do not know the answer to that now, given all the uncertainty. Everybody hopes a deal will be done, but this issue will have to be watched carefully. The new year will be a critical time for our trade in our calves. There is a market for them and we can supply good quality calves to that market.

Regarding Senator Paul Daly's point concerning existing free trade agreements, there are issues with them. Hopefully, a Brexit deal will be concluded. In that context, we will have to return to the issue of certification of products, because there is a long-standing relationship between North and South in respect of processing, etc., and it is important that we retain that relationship. Our deputy president has strong views on that matter.