Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

A paragraph the Minister of State read out, and I know he was reading from a statement supplied to him, stated he was "advised that the multiagency report concluded that the problems in this herd were multifactorial in nature and that common infectious diseases were likely to have accounted for much of the ill-thrift and poor growth rates recorded". That is just fiction. When animals left this herd to go for trials elsewhere, their thrive recovered. Some 45 acres of vegetation, including ditches, etc., also died on the farm. How can someone then say there was not environmental pollution? This is just not acceptable.

As I said, when the factory closed, all the problems with ill thrive and lack of performance from this dairy herd changed. Now, it took two or three years for the recovery in performance to happen, but it is just not right to say it was infectious diseases that caused the problem on Dan Brennan's farm. This is just not the case, and it is just not acceptable. What I am asking and pleading for on behalf of Dan Brennan, to try to bring closure to this situation, is that an independent investigation be undertaken by an international expert. Let him come in and examine the evidence that was there. This case went to Brussels twice, and no satisfactory conclusion was achieved from those two instances of travel to Brussels.

I am asking now that an independent person would come in, examine the evidence that is there and let answers be found to what happened on Dan Brennan's farm. I know this is an historical matter, but the mental and financial anguish this man suffered has been immense. The least we owe him is to have an independent investigation undertaken to give him answers to the question of why this happened on his farm. This is what I am asking and pleading for. When four of us spoke here the last night on this issue, this was the question we had for the Minister. I see the last line in the response read out by the Minister of State refers to the Minister considering this in the new year. I plead for an independent investigation. None of the elected people in the Department, including the Minister of State or any of the other three Ministers or Ministers of State in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine were responsible for what happened in this case. What happened here is historical. Let the truth come out and let us see what was really the problem on Dan Brennan's farm.

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