Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy will appreciate that the substantial emphasis up to relatively recently has been on dealing with the supports that would be necessary if the United Kingdom crashed out of the European Union. Fortunately, that scenario has been avoided to date and the deadline has been moved down the road substantially. The issue has not gone away but we have some respite from it in the immediate future.

The difficult market conditions are partially related to market sentiment arising from Brexit, sterling differentials and high costs associated with last year because of weather difficulties. There was static consumption at a time when there was an increased beef kill because of that bad weather. We have made the case to the Commission that there is reason for an interim support package not related to Brexit at all. It is a view that has some traction from other member states as well. I have been engaged with the Commission since we raised the matter in April and I await its response in that regard.

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