Paul Bradford (Fine Gael)

I support Senator McHugh's call for a debate on agriculture. In the past 18 months there have been many debates on the subject. Once there is a crisis to be debated, we deal with it, but we are also well placed to give a long-term view on the future of agriculture. Will the Leader set aside time early next year for a number of detailed debates on the sector, not just on the Fischler proposals but on the type of farming we want in the country in the next 20 years? I welcome decentralisation to rural areas but we should try to protect the jobs that exist there now. We should consider a series of policy debates on the future of agriculture and try to develop a route map for the future of Irish farming.