Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)

I am glad the Minister of State mentioned the word "flooding" because one can have all the nitrates alleviation measures in the world, but if one does not tackle the issue of flooding it does not amount to anything. Would the Minister of State acknowledge that since the serious flooding last year nothing has been done, in concrete terms, to instigate measures which would prevent such flooding happening again, in particular in the Shannon basin region? The consultation process is lagging behind the need for direct action on flooding events, such as those we saw in the west and throughout the Shannon region. Action is now needed and it precedes the consultation process. We should not envisage a situation in the coming months like that which we saw previously, in terms of its effect on agriculture.

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