Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I too welcome Kevin and say céad míle fáilte. He is very welcome and I hope he will enjoy his visit. I also acknowledge Tony and his years of public service to the State, both here in the Oireachtas and in An Garda Síochána before that. Public service takes many different forms. We thank him very much for his contribution to the State and wish him and his family a long and healthy retirement.

I am particularly proud of the programme for Government because, for the first and only time in my political career, I was asked by our party leader, Simon Harris, to participate in the negotiations for it as part of the Fine Gael team. It is a responsibility I took very seriously and it was a great honour to do so. Over the course of the five or six weeks of negotiating the programme for Government, we set out and charted a course for the country that, we hope, will allow us over the next five years to build a strong, stable Government that can deliver for the country and its people. We hope it will allow us to deliver five budgets over five years to help us reach our potential, as the Minister, Deputy Chambers, mentioned, by addressing the infrastructural deficits and the many challenges we face while enabling us to be as resilient and well prepared as we can be for the many headwinds that are coming our way, both nationally and internationally.

I might first reflect on the programme for Government from the aspect of my new role as Minister at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. The programme for Government recognises the critical role farmers, fishers, foresters and food businesses play in Ireland's society and economy. The sector is responsible for the stewardship of 4.5 million ha of agricultural land and more than 800,000 ha of forestry. It comprises 133,000 farms, 2,000 fishing vessels and aquaculture sites and 2,000 food production and beverage enterprises. It employs more than 170,000 people, or 6.4% of the workforce, and a far greater proportion percentage-wise in our rural and coastal communities.

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We know the economic spend and benefit that economic activity has and its importance for that rural economy. It is a sector where collaborative engagement between the State's research infrastructure and commercial enterprises are resulting in remarkable innovation and ingenuity. The small local enterprises this sector spawned have blossomed into world leaders. Their achievements, supported by farmers, are remarkable. This is a sector with a bright future supported by a programme for Government that recognises its critical importance and potential. This Government will continue to support farmers and the agri-food sector using every policy lever available, as well as supporting our fishers and foresters in the vital role they do. We will ensure vital farm payments are protected and expanded. An increased Vote provision of €2.5 billion in 2025 will allow my Department to provide increased targeted supports for our beef, sheep meat and tillage sectors in 2025. We will support a strong and effective CAP, having provided a combined total of €9.8 billion between EU and national financing under the current programme. The CAP underpins the sustainability of the agri-food sector, rural development and environmental stewardship. This Government will continue to work at EU level to ensure we have an adequately funded CAP in the future which can maintain a stable income for farmers, support sustainable food production and contribute to climate and environmental ambitions. My role in this new Government is important in working with colleagues across government as we fight for that fair share of the multi-financial framework that is the overall EU budget. A key part of this reform in the area of CAP will be around delivering a CAP that is better suited to Irish farmers. If I am still in this position in 17 months' time as a member of the AGRIFISH Council of EU agriculture ministers, I will assume the chair when Ireland takes the Presidency in the second half of 2026. That will be a pivotal moment as Europe is agreeing a new CAP. There will be an opportunity over those six months to frame a CAP in the best interests of European farmers and recognises the important strategic goals of Ireland and its farmers. It will be a great opportunity to deliver real simplification for our farmers. I see the next 17 months between now and then as my opportunity to build relations and allegiances across Europe, work with Commissioner Hansen and his team in the Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development and make sure we put our best foot forward for Ireland and make the most of the opportunity the EU Presidency will give for our farmers, fishers and foresters.

This Government will also tackle the problem of intergenerational transfer of farms. We already do a lot in this space but we need to do more. As well as examining the generational renewal report due back in the coming months, there are existing supports that effectively have a very low take-up rate. I want to see why they are not being taken up to the same level. We know the stress and strain around generational renewal and succession, whether there is an identified successor in the family or not. Getting more young farmers into our sector is key. At the heart of succession is the point around income. Farmers cannot go green if they are in the red financially. We have to support our farmers in that economic piece, whether that is the environment or succession. At the heart of what we want to do is supporting those incomes to make farming a viable proposition for our rural communities. I am also committed to implementing the national women in agriculture action plan to recognise the role of women in farming. This Government will do everything in its power to build a strong case for the renewal of the nitrates derogation at EU level. Supported across government, there is now unprecedented engagement across the entire agri-food industry to drive improvements in our water quality. The establishment of a Cabinet sub-committee chaired by the Taoiseach, bringing in all sectors, not just agriculture but the EPA, local authorities, Uisce Éireann, is a critical step and pivotal point in our programme for Government. I will work with the new Ministers of State - Deputy Grealish will focus on food promotion, new markets and research and development, building a modern, outward-looking sector for the future. As Minister of State for fisheries and the marine, when Deputy Dooley is appointed, he will develop a strategy for the development of this vitally important sector. Total Government spend across the seafood sector over the five-year period 2020-2024 was in excess €800 million, which includes investment of almost €160 million in State-owned public marine infrastructure. This Government will continue to pursue all avenues to increase fishing opportunities for the Irish fishing sector while maintaining sustainable stock levels based on scientific evidence. We will also maintain support for the inshore fishing, aquaculture and processing sectors, underpinning the vital role fishing and the marine have for our coastal communities.

This Government will continue to support the forestry sector and provide attractive financial incentives to farmers to plant, given the beneficial environment impact and commercial opportunities. I am certain that my colleague the Minister of State, Deputy Michael Healy-Rae, will bring a new focus to this sector and to the development of the horticulture sector. The agri-food sector is a modern, dynamic, future-focused sector with roots in the domestic economy but an economic footprint right across the world. I look forward to working closely with my Minister of State colleagues and with all stakeholders from farm organisations and industry bodies to deliver on the potential of this great sector through the commitments in our programme for Government. This programme for Government also has a keen focus on continuing our investment through the Department of rural affairs in our rural communities. The community and voluntary sector has benefited greatly in our public realm through town and village renewals schemes and beyond and in our sports capital programmes. We see that investment in every community the length and breadth of this country. This programme for Government wants to do that. In my county, Kildare, there are many of the challenges this programme for Government looks to address - issues at the heart of the challenges we face, such as housing with our growing economy and population. County Kildare has doubled in population since 1991, with the growing pains that brings for our transport sector and for those commuting - delivering fairer fares with changes to the short hop zone and delivering for small and medium-sized businesses which employ people and create opportunities. I mentioned commuting but for those who want to work in Kildare, better quality of life and more employment opportunities across our county, particularly in south Kildare, continue to be a key focus of mine. School places and transport and supporting that next generation in the education system and those who work in it is a critical part of this programme for Government, as is supporting families to reduce the cost of childcare and supporting those who work in the childcare sector by building a modern, resilient childcare sector that is a support to parents and children and those who work in the area. Disabilities is an area that is a key focus for all of us as public representatives when we deal with individual cases. Whether assessment of needs or school-leavers coming out of special schools looking to transition into employment opportunities, this programme for Government has a significant focus on those issues. The appointment of a Minister and a Minister of State in this area points to that commitment. I look forward to making significant progress in areas like assessment of needs and beyond.

In County Kildare, we have some key specific issues. I am delighted at the implementation of the conservation management plain for the Curragh Plains. It is a unique resource of 5,000 acres in the heart of County Kildare. It is a jewel in the Irish crown, not just in our county. It is a fantastic resource that needs to be managed better and more proactively for those who live on it, use it for recreational purposes, for tourism opportunities and for the many people whose livelihoods are involved in it such as our military, the racehorse sector, sheep farmers and many more. The conservation management plan and commitment in the programme for Government for it to be implemented was a key priority for me. I am very glad to see it delivered in this programme for Government and it is something I will continue to follow through on during this time.

The programme for Government also refers to infrastructure and the infrastructural deficit we have around the country; seeing projects delivered across a new national development plan will be a key part of that. There is a focus on transport in the programme, with a second bridge in Newbridge an example of a key infrastructural project I want to see delivered in this Dáil term. The programme also mentions supports for businesses, in particular lowering the VAT rate for our hospitality sector and bringing in increased business support for our small and medium-sized businesses due to the pressures they have faced with increased costs in recent years. There is also more investment in our health services in the programme. Naas hospital is a good example of somewhere that suffers those growing pains of a county that has doubled in population in a relatively short period. Our primary care centre network continues to be rolled out and expanded. We want to see more supports in our community, supporting those who work in our health sector and seeing increased investment in this hospital and beyond. This is a programme for Government that I feel has the potential to deliver for our people, the people of Kildare, from my perspective as a TD for that county, our farmers, fishers and foresters. I look forward to working with colleagues across government to see its implementation in the years ahead.

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