Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

In addition, this Government has hit rural communities in other ways by virtue of last year's budget which affected rural schools and transport. Under the auspices of this motion, I call on the Minister to rubbish and banish the proposals mooted by the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Quinn, to include farm buildings in assessments for educational grants.

Leaving these failings aside, there is a principal reason we tabled this motion. We did not mention the CAP, as the Minister noted last night, and this was for a technical reason. Should we believe the Minister is not performing the duties we want him to perform in terms of the €1.6 billion envelope, we will not then be hamstrung by the rules and regulations of this Dáil into not being able to introduce another motion that might deal with the CAP when the time comes. We will hold that in reserve and watch very closely.

It was not only yesterday that we took the message; we take it regularly from our constituencies, from farming organisations and communities and from our neighbours and friends with whom we live. On behalf of this country the Minister must come back from Brussels with an envelope of €1.6 billion - which, in real terms, is a great reduction. That must be acknowledged and the rest of the population must know it too. The Minister also has a responsibility to deliver to that community in this year's budget, as Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine. If he fails to do that he will fail to acknowledge the input that sector makes into our society and our economy in these depressed times.

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