Mr. Brian Rushe:

The IFA, and almost all farmers, fully recognise the need for climate action and the need to engage on what is a major issue for everyone. Any process or drawing up of budgets in the future has to include farmers and all the stakeholders involved. It goes back to the point we made about Bord na Móna in the midlands and just transition. Farmers need the same kind of conversation before the fact and not after. We need to recognise that any carbon reduction budget that is brought in will have economic and social impacts on farming.

Nearly everyone will be aware that many farms are in an economically vulnerable place. When measures are introduced to reduce emissions on such farms, those measures will, by and large, have a cost. Farmers are the weakest link in the supply chain. We do not have an ability to pass on that additional cost to other actors in the supply chain. That cost is absorbed by the farm and it hits and hurts farm income. We need to make sure we do not leave farmers behind, that we properly support and bring farmers on the journey and offer them opportunities, if those are available. There are major opportunities in the renewable sector, for example. We need to ensure we keep farmers in business, keep people on the land and keep rural economies alive. We need to keep the three pillars of sustainability in clear focus, which are environmental, economic and social.