Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I agree with Deputy Kenny. That is why I took the unprecedented step of establishing a statutory legal authority to deliver on that. I have also asked it to continue to engage and update me on its progress and I will be stepping to enhance its powers further as is necessary to make sure that transparency is there throughout the supply chain. We obviously have to be proportionate in law in how we establish any agency, but we have to make sure it has all the powers it needs to be effective. I am determined to ensure that is the case and to work with it as it progresses to make sure it has the powers it needs. It has been doing really good work up to this point.

I turn to schemes and how we ensure we are continuing to fund schemes, funding farmers for food production and ensuring they have the capacity and economic reward for the work they are doing in sustainability, biodiversity and the potential for energy production. However, it all has to be about bringing young farmers in and that is about viable incomes but also lifestyles that are sustainable where you can compete with other jobs, you can have a life and you are not tied to the farm all of the time. It is about having a lifestyle, which can compete with any other sector. That has to be our objective in how we look at supporting young farmers into the future and how we make all of our schemes and policy pivot around them.

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