Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister fails to accept the gravity of the situation. The average farm income in this country is half the average industrial wage, which is the issue here. Farmers are struggling to survive. In many cases and where they depend on the farm alone, the only way to survive is by expanding. To expand, they must buy land beside them. This aspect is recognised and the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine raised the issue with the Minister for Finance. It is clear that he said it was not just for the young farmer or where a farm was in a family, but it was also an issue for the person who wants to expand his or her holding. There are all kinds of schemes in place, including TAMS, to assist farmers in that regard, yet the Government comes back and takes away with the other hand. It smacks of something that was not thought through.

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