Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I have met the farmers in the Deputy's constituency who have taken that initiative. It is encouraging and shows the potential that is there. Any measure that we can take to push and maximise the potential to reverse the trend of recent years and to grow tillage again is something I will consider and promote. The straw incorporation scheme, for example, which I launched as a pilot measure for the first time last year, delivers up to €10,000 for a tillage farmer with 100 acres. That is something that I have plugged into this CAP strategic plan and, therefore, it has moved from a pilot scheme to a permanent scheme under the next CAP programme that will run up to 2027. There was a meeting of the national fodder and food security committee yesterday under the chairmanship of Mike Magan, under the advisory leadership of Dr. Frank O'Mara and all of the key agriculture stakeholders. I asked them to reflect on the progress we have made this year and to come back to me with their advice on how we can build on that next year and in the years ahead. I look forward to receiving their advice.

See this speech in context