Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

It certainly is an issue for the Department and for the Government. One of the things that is lacking is a well-framed policy roadmap. That must be done by the Government and by the Minister. Previous questions have been asked with regard to fishing and task forces. Where is the task force with regard to the wool industry and the potential that is there? The possible uses include horticultural packaging, insulation, textiles, cosmetics, field products and composites. I am only listing out some of them.

The Government carried out a report that cost €100,000 and then left it sitting there, waiting for the industry to do something. The clearest thing about wool is that the farmers are simply not getting the prices. The key economic concern for producers is that the price achieved for farmers is less than the cost of shearing. We know this. We now have a report that cost €100,000. We have set aside €30,000. We are going to do a Pontius Pilate on it and say it is absolutely nothing to do with us, and that we will wait for the council to be set up and ignore all the other recommendations. However, the best part is the wonderful opportunity for local industry.

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