Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I compliment the members of the Regional Group on bringing forward this important motion. The EPA has released another report this morning. It is a disgraceful, discredited organisation because it will not look at municipal plants. The Minister of State knows this better than I do. I have put it to him previously. The EPA is discredited, comes out with fake news all the time, and demonises farmers and paints them as the baddies. Of course, farmers are mentioned in this morning's report as well, included with the municipal plants, but it had to say that. The facts speak for themselves. The records are there. The farming organisations and the Government must respect farming. Farmers put food on the table. I come from a small mountain farm and I inherited my ancestral home. There are only grazing hill sheep now because we could not have cattle or crops on it.

We must think of farmers here. Deputy Cairns and all the parties of the left attacked them, yet they want food. What are they going to have - starvation? The Deputies can keep on with their green policies. They blame the Green Party all the time, but they must also lay the blame at the Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael MEPs, who voted for this disastrous legislation.

See this speech in context