Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)

I wish to speak about the subject of this motion. I will stick to the point of this debate, which has gone all over the shop, quite frankly. The purpose of the motion is to seek an extension to the farm waste management scheme. The Labour Party would support such an extension, not for political expediency or point-scoring, but because we realise that a certain number of farmers will not be able to make the deadline. We support such farmers for reasons of common sense and pragmatism, some of which have already been outlined. I am aware of farmers who have not been able to get contractors to do the works which are required under the scheme. The poor weather we have endured this year has delayed some building works. Many farmers will not be able to meet the deadline as a consequence of a myriad of other circumstances, which I will not repeat. There is merit in raising, in a genuine way, the possibility of an extension to the deadline. Some people will be adversely affected if a change is not made.

The valid point made earlier by Deputy Deenihan, which has also been raised by the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Organisation, ICMSA, deserves further examination. I refer to the interpretation of State aid and the interpretation of the scheme. I wish to quote from a letter sent by the president of the ICMSA to the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food on 25 August last. The letter, which gets to the heart of the debate on this motion, reads:

Dear Minister

I wish to refer again to the 31 December 2008 deadline under the Farm Waste Management Scheme. While we are all aware of the background to the scheme and the setting of the December 2006 and December 2008 deadlines, there is clearly a major problem for a growing number of farmers if the 31 December 2008 deadline is to be interpreted as meaning that the work must be completed and approved by your Department on or before that date.

We do not accept that this is the only interpretation. I believe, based on the EC Guidelines for State Aid in the Agriculture and Forestry Sector, that Ireland should propose that the 31 December 2008 deadline can be met by an individual farmer where the building work is to be completed or commenced after the 31 December 2008 if that farmer has a legally binding contract for the construction of the building and or supply of materials in place on or before 31 December 2008.

This procedure, reliance on a legally binding contract, is used quite often for the phased introduction or termination of tax relief measures. I believe that this procedure can be readily adopted by your Department and would meet the requirements set down in the EC Guidelines for State Aid in the Agriculture and Forestry Sector.

That proposal, which is based on a valid interpretation of the state aid guidelines, represents common sense. I echo Deputy Deenihan's comments on it. In his response to this motion, the Minister, Deputy Smith, did not respond to Deputy Deenihan's point. I call on one of the Government Deputies to respond to the issue that has been raised in an honest manner. Is this interpretation of the guidelines valid?

I do not wish to play politics with this issue. A balanced and reasonable view is being put forward by a group of farmers who will not be in a position to submit the card A due to genuine reasons. It is reasonable for us to echo the views of those farmers, notwithstanding what Deputy Conlon and others have said in support of the scheme. We have had superfluous speeches by Government backbenchers, but there is a genuine issue that needs to be addressed. Before the clock runs down on this debate, I hope that the Government will come back with a response to the points that I and Deputy Deenihan have raised. There is a genuine concern among a small minority of farmers and that must be addressed.

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