Mr. James Healy:

If we look simply at the age demographic of Irish farming there have been some small improvements in recent years. The most recent CAP, which provided a top-up for young farmers, was certainly a step in the right direction but there are more challenges than what is coming through the CAP. To be fair, in this country a value is definitely placed on young farmers and creating generational change. The biggest challenge that faces many young farmers is access to land. As Mr. Dillon mentioned, we have a huge cohort of farmers in their 60s, 70s and 80s who have known nothing else. There is a fear that if they hand over the farm, whether to a son, nephew, daughter, niece or complete stranger, they have nothing left and no security for themselves. As Mr. Dillon mentioned, there is a fear of change and the unknown. A step we have taken in this direction is the land mobility service. Older farmers who put themselves forward as people who want to take a step back or retire are matched with a suitable younger farmer with whom they can farm in partnership, lease the farm or work together. It creates a link, trust and transition. This is one measure we have taken to try to address access to land, which is the main issue for young farmers. The CAP has gone some way to helping. Something we have proposed for the next CAP is support for schemes such as this, which helped create the transition.