Brian Stanley (Laois, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Page 111 of the programme for Government states: "A strong commitment to ensure sustained profitability in the beef sector will be at the heart of a new Government." In the past three years, it has been business as usual for the beef barons. It is more than six weeks since the task force was scheduled to meet, but no progress has been made in that regard. There has been no plenary session, which is unfortunate. The meeting should have taken place. Sinn Féin agrees that it should not have been obstructed.

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Creed, has sat on his hands and kicked to touch on this issue by passing it to the courts and the chairman of the beef task force. We need the Government to take a proactive stance. It is beyond doubt that the beef sector is in crisis. The Taoiseach admitted as much in the past two days. We need the beef task force to get up and running and the injunctions to be lifted. We need to improve the toxic atmosphere which is at the heart of the issue. There are outstanding injunctions against two farmers. The Minister made reference in the House to death threats. He needs to set the record straight in that regard. This morning, he claimed that he was told of the alleged death threats by a third party. There cannot be a level playing field between factories and farmers while one side has a legal action hanging over people on the other. We need the Minister and the Taoiseach to engage with the various stakeholders and end the stand-off. They should ask C&D Foods to lift the outstanding injunctions against the two farmers as a gesture of goodwill. The Minister should set the record straight in respect of the claims he made yesterday.

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