Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)

I welcome the opportunity to debate the CAP reform proposals. I welcome what the Minister said in his address. I agree it is necessary to develop a more competitive and sustainable agriculture sector.

I was interested in the Minister's point about progressive capping. He said it may not have much impact in Ireland but it is the right direction to go. For over 30 years, I have attended public meetings and I often hear that so much of the budget goes to so few farmers. The idea of capping is interesting and the Minister will follow up on this.

At the other end of the scale are the small farmers. Many of the requests I receive concern minimum payments. I do not refer to €500 or €1,000 small-scale payments but something more realistic. This is something the Minister should examine when he considers capping and helping smaller farmers.

There is an emphasis on a fair return for farmers. Farmers want to produce and the idea of setting aside 7% of land for ecological purposes is neither feasible, practical or welcome. The idea that payments were tied to production is always more positive. We have had these schemes already, such as REPS, the agri-environment options scheme, AEOS, and the disadvantaged area payments. These were of great benefit to smaller producers and I appeal to the Minister to get the grants paid as quickly as possible. If the Department of Social Protection can pay out so much money to its clients every week, we should be able to get these payments out. We saw that frustration boiled over in Wexford because of the delays.

Sorting out land parcels for the AEOS scheme, which is particularly a problem in the west of Ireland, is important.

I would like to see a particular emphasis on the sheep industry. My own county of Galway is famous for its sheep but there is a problem with support for the sheep industry and the wool industry, which is becoming more important. Deputy Brendan Smith, when he was Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, did find €8 million in grants for sheep fencing and mobile equipment, which was an important incentive for the sheep industry.

With regard to the proposals on greening, someone said in the past few days that we have green tape as well as red tape. I am disappointed we have not received more information on this. With the REP and AEO schemes there is already great regard for the environment among farmers. If I might make one criticism, I do not agree that there should be a specific type of fencing, which would take up much of the grant money on that scheme.

I welcome the help and assistance for young farmers, including the top-up payments that were mentioned. This should ensure the future of agricultural colleges throughout the country, which is positive news. I have said to the Minister before that my local agricultural college in Mountbellew has so many applications it cannot take in all of the students on its courses. That is a positive thing in one way, but it shows there is a need for more teachers and more places in the agricultural colleges.

The Minister has talked about the case he is making with regard to the reference year for entitlements. I welcome his statement that farmers who had one payment entitlement in 2011 would be encompassed in this proposal. However, it is still of major concern. We hear reports about the dangers of land-grabbing and all of the various behind the scenes efforts that might be made to distort the situation, which is worrying. I wish the Minister well. He has a big battle ahead but he will have our support. We must be careful to ensure the continued livelihood of farmers, particularly smaller farmers, in this country.

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