Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am sorry about earlier on. There were votes and a Bill on agricultural appeals under way. I apologise that not all of us could be here when the witnesses were talking. I have known Dr. Farrell for a long time. She is a good Mountbellew woman. She has spent a lifetime trying to bring forward ideas for rural Ireland, for sustainability and to keep rural communities alive. A long time ago, we had a debate somewhere. No more than myself, she is still at it. At one time, women, even our mothers, did not get the credit they deserved on farms across the country. People would look at you with two heads now if you said they were boiling pots to heat the meal to feed the pigs. That was done. If you said that to someone now, they would think you came from outer space. In the witnesses' opinion, is the Department of agriculture moving forward in the right way in trying to help women in farming? What would they say to the Department about the barriers? I know the group has its 12 proposals but what would they say about any obstacles the Department is putting in the way of getting more women more involved in agriculture?