Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

There are a couple of issues that are a threat to the economy, for instance, soil management, which is at an all-time low. I looked at somebody on television last week with a tractor in a field of corn, where there were tracks at least two feet deep, and water was flowing before the tyres to the end of the row. That is bad for cultivation. It creates an acidic element in the soil that is damaging. In a few years, the fertility of the soil will go down and our ability to meet the demand for food for an increasing population will be seriously damaged.

I also draw attention to the Kerry Group, which has had particular problems with dairy. I cannot understand it but I have seen it myself. In our house, I have had to do the supermarket shopping in recent years. As a result, I spot the things that are happening and the trends. The trend is a huge prevalence of imported dairy and less and less Irish produce. That is an indicative straw in the wind. We need to keep that in mind. The Taoiseach is aware of this because he comes from a constituency that is both rural and urban. The two demands are there. It is important we recognise that these things are happening and are afoot now. There is no easy way to explain them away. They cannot be explained away.

I will not go further into that other than to again congratulate the Taoiseach on his appointment. I wish him the best. He has the knowledge and experience that he can put to good account in the Department he is now in and to lead the country, as it was previously, in a positive way, to ensure that the concerns of our population are measured and dealt with as they arise in a fashion that is acceptable.