The heart of rural Ireland – its farming heritage – is threatened by a climate of uncertainty and mistrust. We witnessed the farmers' protest immediately after Christmas. Farmers are being driven off the land as farming incomes fall and the expected support from the Government fails to materialise. The costs of production have risen, irrespective of enterprise, and young people are adopting a negative attitude to careers in farming. Irish farming faces further uncertainty under the Fischler proposals. Will we stand back and allow our rural farming communities to be destroyed? Will anyone be left to produce Irish food within ten years? These are serious questions and they must be addressed.