Paul Lawless (Mayo, Aontú) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister and wish him all the best in the years ahead. I also welcome the IFA president, Mr Francie Gorman, who is here.

There are so many issues we could talk about, from GAEC 2 and the major concerns farmers have about it, to the ACRES scheme and the lack of payments, forestry issues, the Mercosur deal, and the TB issue my colleague referenced.

There are major concerns with the EU's direction on CAP and the removal of its ring-fenced nature. We must remember where CAP came from. It was the policy that would regulate and guarantee food security across Europe post the Second World War.

In many ways, it was EU policy that ensured farmers were removed from the product they produced in terms of profit, making farmers reliant on the postman and the cheque. Now, at this juncture, the EU is seeking to remove the ring-fenced nature of CAP. This is hugely concerning. Ursula von der Leyen is intent on the single-stream model of CAP, which will dilute and reduced the funding going into the agricultural sector across Europe. It will have a negative impact across this country as well. It will dissolve Pillar 2 funding and supports for the sector. Mr. Francie Gorman stated that it was like putting a knife through the Common Agricultural Policy, yet Fine Gael has backed Ursula von der Leyen to the hilt. It will be to the detriment of Irish farmers.

What is the Minister going to do to ensure that the Common Agricultural Policy is ring-fenced for farmers? This situation is particularly worrying when we see the rearmament and considerable additional military spending across Europe. Is that where the money will be diverted to? Will we see a removal of CAP and of spending on the agricultural sector to increase spending across Europe on military activities?

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