Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)

I am delighted to see the Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Deputy Trevor Sargent here and thank him for coming into the House to listen to my plea on behalf of REPS planners in Teagasc. I raised this matter on the Order of Business, along with my colleague Deputy Pádraic McCormack, who also feels very strongly about this issue.

The decision not to extend the contracts of these REPS planners makes absolutely no sense on any level. An arm of Government which has the capacity to generate €3 million net profit, while providing employment for 101 people and a service for which there is demand is to be abandoned. This is against a backdrop of the worst unemployment and economic crisis in living memory. If it were not so serious it would be laughable and if we were discussing this nine days earlier one would be forgiven for believing it was a bad April Fools' joke. Going down the road of axing the jobs of these 101 REPS planners is hugely counterproductive. As a result, the taxpayer will face a bill for social welfare payments and there will be a considerable loss in revenue in terms of income tax, PRSI and levies, not to mention reduced VAT receipts and general spending in their local economies by these individuals and their families.

The option the Minister seems to be against is retaining these 101 people in employment, where there will be no social welfare liability, they will contribute tax and levies to the State finances and they will also generate €3 million towards the funding of Teagasc, thereby allowing it, through its research and development programmes, to contribute to the long-term sustainability of agriculture and its valuable contribution to this economy. I genuinely have difficulty understanding the logic behind this move. Why, in any economy, let alone one where there is a severe need to generate employment, would one even consider axing viable income generating jobs? We have found it difficult to get a clear understanding from the Minister as to what is behind this decision. Is it bureaucracy gone mad under this Government yet again? There is agreement on the need for a recruitment freeze in the public sector, and I strongly believe in this. Thus, it is just about keeping the numbers down, regardless of their ability to contribute. In this instance we have a revenue-generating scheme, yet it appears the Department will not give the green light to contract extensions for these REPS planners. Is this part of a more sinister move on the part of the Minister to put another nail in the coffin of the REP scheme?

Since this issue was first raised, we are now aware of the 17% reduction in payments announced by the Minister in the budget, thereby breaching his contract with 12,000 farmers. Is this what the Minister had in mind all the time? Is the Minister starting a process to dismantle the scheme? Are further cuts on the way next year? Already farmers are considering the viability of remaining in the scheme. I have had contact with farmers in this predicament who must decide if the investment proposed in their REPS plans can now be justified when the Government has already broken its contract once and may do so again. Shame on the Green Party for being part of such a move and for allowing this to happen while it is in Government. The fact that it can call itself a Green Party while its members stand idly by as an environmental protection scheme is cut is truly astonishing.

Aside from the damage caused to the specific REPS programme by the refusal to renew these contracts, it will also be damaging in the long term to the Teagasc organisation as a whole. These people are the primary contact for many of the client farmers and, if they go, a large amount of knowledge and information will be lost to individual farmers and to the organisation in terms of experience and expertise. Teagasc has suffered as a result of recruitment bans in the past, which means that a large number of retirements will fall due in the next four years. To let go the dynamic and motivated members who are the future of the organisation seems to be a retrograde step. I ask the Minister to address this matter urgently, bring clarity to the situation and make a positive move to retain these posts.

My party spokesperson on agriculture, Deputy Michael Creed, received a letter from Professor Gerry Boyle, the director of Teagasc. He said it was not a matter for Teagasc but for the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. I will read his letter for the record.

See this speech in context