Mr. Liam Hanrahan:

If one takes the reduction measures which have been suggested to us in terms of reducing cow numbers by 100,000 cows and a stocking rate of two cows per hectare, a tip of the iceberg of impact assessment would be that there would be 50,000 hectares out of circulation. The competition for land would go through the roof. As the Chairman mentioned earlier, the price of land will go higher again, compounding the issue and putting policy in the opposite direction of what we are trying to do.

On top of that, the impact will not be even across sectors. The less viable sectors will really be hit. Do we want to leave them behind? We do not, anyway.