Ulick Burke (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Alyward. In his concluding remarks the Minister of State said "we are on the threshold of a new era", but I am not sure that it is a new era for agriculture. How prepared are we for this new era? In the past two decades we have survived under Fianna Fáil Ministers for Agriculture and Food who had no policy or indication of a policy for any aspect of agriculture. Senator O'Brien made a very telling statement when he said the Minister is very good in a crisis. That is the only time we have seen an active Minister for Agriculture and Food in the current Government or in the previous Fianna Fáil led Administration. That is very sad.