Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I was told by farmers that some of their colleagues remained outside the city because they did not want to interact negatively with the consumers they regard as an important part of their industry. We will not get into semantics; it was an important demonstration of strength and all concerned have shown they can act in a fair and equitable way. We have moved away from the negative protests of the past, which were not beneficial to anybody.

The people with whom I spoke expressed several key concerns. They wanted to demonstrate the importance of the agricultural sector not only to Members of the Oireachtas, but also to the people of this country. Deputy Ó Cuív outlined the importance of this sector to the economy. I acknowledge the announcement by Kerry Group. Agriculture is often regarded as solely benefiting the farming community but when one considers the considerable employment and revenue it generates, it must be seen as a benefit to everybody. Many farmers believe it is important to maintain CAP direct payments for farm incomes. Some in this country regard direct payments as supporting the farming community but they do not realise that payments under the CAP helps to ensure safe and traceable supplies of quality food at a time when the global population is growing.

As the Minister will be aware, this is a critical time for negotiations on the EU budget, which is due to be agreed during the autumn. Farmers seek to retain the current envelope of money. We can discuss the details of how that money will be distributed at a later stage.

Farmers regularly point out to Members that farm schemes were hit disproportionately in budget 2012. Total expenditure across all Departments was cut by approximately 3.5% but the agricultural budget was cut by 6.5%. That is a disproportionate reduction which I hope the Minister will be able to reverse in the next budget. He has been in office for long enough to gain a better understanding of the concerns of farmers and the industry and I hope he will make a better fist of the Estimates negotiations this year. Under the agriculture budget generally, expenditure on farm schemes was cut by 17%. The Minister should by now realise the importance of these schemes to the farming sector. Deputy Ó Cuív spoke about the cuts to disadvantaged areas payments and REPS, which target the most vulnerable farmers. Farmers are concerned about the Minister's approach to budget negotiations for 2013. Cuts of up to €90 may be inflicted on the agriculture budget, which would represent a further 6.6% reduction in funding. However, the many kites that have been flown about the budget have allowed certain Ministers to escape the limelight. Perhaps we should not believe all we hear in this regard.

Farmers want to be treated with fairness and equality. They see themselves as primary producers who provide raw material for which they are price takers. They believe they will have a real impact on the recovery of this economy. They are committed to working their land and to providing the raw materials through which Kerry Group and other companies can generate profits for their shareholders and a considerable return to the State through corporation tax and job creation.

Without primary producers being able to maintain a standard of living that encourages them to continue to do their work and to attract their sons and daughters and younger farmers back into the enterprise, the seed with the capacity to do so much for the recovery of this economy will not germinate and will be lost. It is in that vein that I appeal to the Minister to look at the primary producers in a way that gives them protection, as the CAP has done in the past.

We can all remember a period when the CAP supported continuous production when demand was not there. We all recall the butter and beef mountains and the wine lakes. This seemed a crazy policy to some at the time, but we saw the benefits of it in the long run, because it retained the primary producers within their farming enterprises and saw them through the period when supply outstripped the demand that existed. Having succeeded in retaining so many farmers and families on the land, we are now in a position, thankfully, to benefit from increased demand across world markets. We have seen off the importation of beef from Brazil, we have seen off the competition from other sectors and have succeeded in maintaining a primary producer that will benefit the greater economy.

Now that the world population and the price of food have increased, we are in a position to be able take advantage of that. This is because at the time, people like former Commissioner Ray MacSharry and others saw the long-term potential for agriculture. I appeal to the Minister now to recognise the potential. It is now more obvious, because we can see the growth of consumer demand. We have a well recognised strategy, Harvest 2020, and it feeds into the increase in the consumer population and in demand. Unfortunately, however, if we continue to erode confidence in the farming sector and continue to put pressure on smaller producers, we will do them a disservice.

In the context of the CAP and the allocation of resources, we encouraged many farmers to remain in marginally viable farms and in the past we talked a lot about the protection of the environment and farmers being the custodians of the environment and lands in rural areas. It is vital that we continue supporting these farmers through providing support schemes. They may not be the strongest or greatest producers in terms of quantity, but they have a significant role. That is the reason schemes such as AEOS and others are of vital importance. I appeal to the Minister to consider this.

The regression on stocking density was outrageous and it has had a devastating effect on many farming families. The impact of it is affecting their livelihoods and their incomes.

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