Paul Daly (Fianna Fail)
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I compliment Mr. Reilly on his presentation. As Deputy Penrose, a fellow Westmeath man, said, we are quite familiar with the jobs provided by Mr. Reilly in areas and on back roads where one would not see many other businesses operating. I also know from experience how other businesses depend on Mr. Reilly’s and the success of the mushroom business. There will be a knock-on effect and a loss of jobs if action is not taken.

I welcome Mr. Reilly’s report and note with interest the requests it contains. Has the mushroom business taken any action or changed its marketing strategy in any way? As Deputy Penrose said, in a worst-case scenario and if nothing was forthcoming from this side, has the industry a plan B to ride out this storm? The delegation said that there have already been casualties and that existing growers are not extending their operations to take up the slack. If the exchange rate gets worse, does the delegation see a potential scenario over the next 18 months where mushroom growers may not even be able to meet the demands of the contracts already in place for the UK market? Could we end up leaving the market more open to eastern European suppliers?