Tom Sheahan (Kerry South, Fine Gael)

On the issue of the farm waste management scheme, there is one question to be asked of the Minister. Has he asked the EU authorities directly for an extension?

My colleagues have described the weather we have had this year. During the boom in the construction industry, which is now paling into insignificance, one could not get steel. A friend of mine working in a steel company told me recently that five of his colleagues were let go and that there are five more to be let go. Those jobs will be lost before Christmas. There are many reasons for extending the scheme and there is much merit in doing so. As outlined by other Deputies, an extension of six months is required by farmers because of safety issues and the nature of the ground over the summer. Extending the scheme would be cost neutral. In the outside world, it would be called a "no-brainer"; it is a win-win situation.

I will outline how this problem arose and why there should be an extension. The Office of the Revenue Commissioners made life very difficult for farmers in that it was taking five to six weeks for VAT receipts to be returned. The planning authorities were to deal with this sympathetically and expediently. I encountered a case in which a man had to build a slatted unit 12 miles from his house after three months of negotiations. A planner dictated to the farmer that he did not need a unit of the size requested although the latter had 100 cattle. The planner was wrong and the farmer had to build two slatted units.

I know farmers and have been contacted by them on this matter. There is something very fishy going on. The Minister and his officials are adopting a partisan approach in favour of Members on the Government side of the House. I made representations on behalf of farmers who had their slatted units inspected last July but who have not got a bob yet. They have not been paid. Deputies on the other side of the House seem to be able to make progress and cases are being fast-tracked for them. I call on the Minister to ensure a level playing pitch for farmers. Six months should be granted in which farmers, contractors, steel companies and everybody else involved can get the job done on a cost-neutral basis. Will the Minister please ask the Commission for an extension?

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