Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Minister said that I can rest assured that he will continue to prioritise this issue but I am not assured by his performance to date. I am not assured that he even fully understands or comprehends the importance of this issue or his role in ensuring that the live export trade is maximised. The Minister knows that the Irish beef sector is under massive pressure in terms of prices and the losses that farmers are taking. The only good market in recent months has been the demand in Spain and Holland for dairy bull calves, which have been plentiful in recent years as a result of the milk quota having been abolished. The Minister should have been working with the sector to ensure there were no blockages in terms of lairage capacity at Cherbourg that would limit the amount of animals that could be exported from the country. Instead, he washed his hands of any role in this. At the same time, he is trying to take credit for a belated and small increase in capacity. The Minister has been asleep on the job in terms of his responsibility here and farmers' incomes will take a hit as a result of the live export market not being utilised to the greatest extent possible.

What effort is the Minister making now to ensure that capacity can be further increased in order to maximise the market, albeit that the peak has unfortunately passed for this year?

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