Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)

It is a slow, incremental process but our hearts and minds are in the right place. If I am to engage in a bit of rhetoric along with some of my counterparts in opposition, I would say that to govern is to choose. That means we will have to make tough decisions in future, but at the same time we are trying to keep the basics right.

I would like to address the habitats directive and farming, as Deputies have referred to them. The "Food Harvest 2020" document has been bought into by all stakeholders involved in the rural economy, including the co-operative movement and farming organisations. We will see tangible growth in that area, but the challenge is whether it will be jobless growth. I acknowledge we must be cognisant of that also.

Flooding was referred to and the Deputy mentioned his inability to get information on the habitats directive. However, not one Deputy in the Technical Group has ever approached me as a Minister to ask for any kind of briefing on the area I represent, which is a foundation for the growth we are talking about. Like other Ministers, my door is open to any Member of the House in order to engage with them constructively on any aspect. Let us do away with the rhetoric that has filled the air for a long time.

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