Seymour Crawford (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)

I am certainly not one to indulge in scaremongering because I live in a community where reality is quickly dawning on the people concerned. Will the Minister assure us there will be a common-sense approach to managing the transitional period because switching to chemical fertiliser involves major changes for farmers? Many farmers say that after 1 February they will not take slurry or manure.

We have a serious cross-Border problem in that much poultry manure comes south to displace our poultry manure in mushroom units. The number of planning permissions granted has been increased for poultry production in Northern Ireland.

A senior official at the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government told us on the record of the Joint Committee on Agriculture and Food that he was not aware of the problem of poultry and pig farmers. I cannot understand where he has been in recent years. For a man negotiating in Brussels on our behalf to make that statement on the record at the Joint Committee on Agriculture and Food scares me. If the Minister thinks press releases from this side of the House are causing problems she need look no further than Department officials who still do not seem to understand how serious the position is for producers of pigs and poultry as well as extensive dairy production.

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