Tony Killeen (Clare, Fianna Fail)

I have not addressed the final element of the Deputy's initial question. The relationship between producers, processors and retailers is an important aspect of all of this. There may well be a structural change in the market at this particular time. I have heard that postulated by people who look at the price in New Zealand and the USA, for example. Notwithstanding that, considerable research has been done, not least by Teagasc, which the Deputy will be aware of, which indicates that one of the effects of a low price such as this is that people who increase their production are unlikely to continue and, in fact, are likely to go in the opposite direction. The balance between the availability of the product and the market demand for it is likely to become balanced in the relatively short term in view of the dramatic drop in prices at this stage.

In response to the Deputy's question about fair trade legislation, neither the Government nor anybody else should have their ears or minds closed to any form of initiative that might address what is an enormous difficulty for Irish dairy farmers and one which, even if it were short-lived, has enormous consequences as regards sustainability and incomes.

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