Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I raise the serious concerns around the fact agriculture's relevance in the EU policy sphere is diminishing. It is obvious to all of us. We are witnessing decisions in Brussels, and increasingly in Dublin from Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Green Party, that seems to indicate cows' days are numbered. That is a pity. There is a situation highlighted in a letter signed by 16 EU agriculture ministers in February. I wonder whether the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy McConalogue, signed it. The letter was sent to Swedish EU Presidency to complain about the serious risk of the marginalisation of the role of agriculture within EU policymaking. One thing is now certain, namely that both here and across the EU bloc, increased space devoted to climate and environmental challenges is depriving farmers and the food sector in general of the opportunity to produce food at low cost. The dramatic shift in focus in policy here and in Brussels is leaving farmers feeling as though they are being bypassed by environmental priorities. It is quite obvious to them.

We have witnessed the Government pushing ahead with forced reductions in livestock emissions, simply because the bureaucrats in Brussels and Dublin want to see this happen. This shift in policy is creating considerable problems for consumers, with food inflation on the rise and farmers facing some of the toughest times in recent history. Weather is one contributor to that and climatic conditions were always there. They are squeezed by skyrocketing feed, input and energy costs as well.

It is also clear that the area of competence for agriculture within the policymaking area that makes up the EU institutions is now shrinking because of the unveiling of the EU's flagship environmental policy, the so-called Green Deal. The deal is not only detrimental to agriculture but also to rural economies. Yet it has been embraced as a silver bullet by this Government, despite its damaging effects on rural communities. When the food part of the farm to fork strategy was presented to the EU agricultural heads, it was totally shocking to us in the Rural Independent Group. We are calling on Government to provide clarity in this area. It is not acceptable and we will not have an agricultural industry if it continues in this vein.

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