Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

There is another issue that strikes me. We have all heard Prime Minister Johnson speak quite a lot about the ability of the UK to go off and make future trade deals once Brexit is done. Has the Department been looking at forward game-planning for what might happen in this regard, particularly for our agrifood sector? The UK still is our largest export market. What happens if it does a significant deal with, say, New Zealand and we start to find a lot of beef or lamb from that country coming into Ireland? Is the Department doing any kind of war gaming in terms of advising the Irish farming sector? That sector is very challenged at the moment but prices are up because of market demand, which will lead, we hope, to further productivity. Is the Department advising farmers of what could happen in the future if the UK gets a trade agreement whereby it pivots to taking in far more meat from other countries than it does from Ireland?