Réada Cronin (Kildare North, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for the presentations. I do not know if they saw yesterday's meeting but it certainly left us with no illusions about the scale of the emergency and the required response. We also had outstanding farmers speaking to us late last year around November about the transition process, particularly just transition for farmers, taking in organic farming etc. They were reassured that they are valued as custodians of the land and I am only one generation from a farming family. We all sense that farmers are, globally, custodians of the land.

Professor John Sweeney said at yesterday's meeting that if agriculture reduces emissions by only 33%, there will be a 60% burden on the rest of society, and if the reduction is 15%, it will leave an 80% burden on the rest of society. He said it will not be manageable if the reduction is just 10%. The IFA has said it accepts that it must make the reductions suggested in the budget. Given that its special role has been acknowledged by the Climate Change Advisory Council, what is its position on those targets being reached?

I have seen that a third of food wasted in the world goes to landfill, which is horrendous. We are a rich country and Irish farmers work so hard to produce food. It can be back-breaking work so seeing food going straight to landfill is appalling. As we are a rich country, I am sure the waste amounts to more than a third in Ireland; I am sure that in poorer countries, most people are like my mam, leaving nothing to waste. She keeps food for stew or for birds or whatever.

I also have a question for Ms Michelle Murphy about social dialogue. Is she confident there is a real commitment to retrofitting as something that is essential and really ethical so nobody is left behind? We see how private healthcare relies on the public system. Is there a cultural mindset there? Some people feel inequality is good for us because it keeps the capitalist system growing. Does she have any comments on food waste?