Steven Matthews (Wicklow, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister. There is a political responsibility on every one of us as public representatives not to go out and blame. Some parties blame this on a flawed process and others criticise the messenger - the highly-competent, experienced and dependable EPA reports. That is not the way this will be solved. It will be solved by ensuring farmers have the supports they need to protect water quality, which I believe they want to do. They have now seen the cost of not doing that. The financial assistance must be available to get them through these couple of years as we approach 220 kg N/ha. We need further monitoring inspection supports and better support for the EPA because we depend on those reports. They are the proof we bring to Europe to demonstrate that the actions we have taken have improved water quality. It is not to try to damage the reputation of those, it is to actually enhance it and improve the work it does. That is the solution.