Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Before I ask my second supplementary question, I welcome and congratulate the Minister of State, Deputy Tom Hayes. I know his commitment to farming and I am sure he will do an outstanding job in the new role he has been given.

Would the Minister not agree that his proposals on internal convergence and greening do not reflect productivity, if productivity of livestock farms is measured by stocking density, by natural nitrogen or organic nitrogen output per hectare and so on? Based in Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine figures the farmers getting either more than €400 per hectare or €500 per hectare are only on average about twice as productive as all of the 50,000 farmers who get less than €250 per hectare, in other words an average of €125 per acre each. The Minister is basing his argument on productivity and active and productive farmers that we have heard perpetually from the Minister and certain farming organisations. The Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine figures do not bear out his argument and show very high levels of productivity from the farmers who are getting very low payments.

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