Róisín Garvey (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

Is there a precedent for means testing on net income in other sectors in Ireland? I asked that in my original speech. Do witnesses need help to promote farm assist? Do they need help with the bureaucracy of it? What are the witnesses' asks? Should we ask for more Teagasc staff to help people? I know bureaucracy is ruining everything in every sector. I know that farmers traditionally did not have to deal with much paperwork and now they are forced to do loads. It is so stressful. I have helped people to fill out forms.

Let us have clear asks so that the committee can drive them on for the witnesses as opposed to just saying that these are the issues. We need to look at solutions. What are the witnesses asking for and what is the committee asking for? Do we need more staff in Teagasc? Do we need to do some PR so that people realise that every sector takes money from the Government? Everybody gets children's allowance. It is not a hand-out; it is a hand-up. It is just a payment. This is the way the country is run now. There is a PR piece there too because we do not want people to feel they are begging. As the witnesses said, there is a stigma around it.

I meet Macra na Feirme a lot. It has different asks in some ways. It is looking for more around technology supports and farming diversification. If any sector should get the universal basic income, the farming sector should, 100%. I will be killed by the artists for saying this. I find there is a lot of Dublin-centric thinking in a lot of what is happening. I do not think people are taking the threat to our land, our farms and our communities seriously enough.