Mr. Kevin Kinsella:

I wish to make it clear that the Minister has said he will not introduce a coupled payment. That is what he has said on the record. He said it across the table to us. As I understand it, he said it publicly at the sheep conference in Athlone as well. I heard him say it. Our first preference would be to have a strong coupled payment in the sheep sector.

What we are trying to ensure here is that the original €18 million in the sheep grassland scheme is not lost within Pillar 1. If the Minister proceeds with his proposal as it is today, that is what will happen regardless of what will happen in Pillar 2. Committee members need to be clear on that. If the Minister proceeds with what he is doing today, the €18 million will be lost by 2019 in Pillar 1. We are asking the committee to support us in our efforts to increase that money from €14 million to €18 million and try to protect that for the sheep sector as much as we can.