James Bannon (Fine Gael)

—— the attempts of this lame-duck Government to convince by self-praise, by spin, waffle and lies, all calculated to cover what will be the order of the day, weeks and months ahead. The Government has been completely inept in running the agricultural sector, which has suffered from ten years of wilful Government mismanagement.

Since this Government took office, an average of seven farmers per day have been leaving agriculture. The Government would have us believe that all is rosy in the sector. The motion states that Fianna Fáil commends the Government on continuing to prioritise agriculture and on providing leadership in meeting any challenges to our most important natural resource based industry. That is merely empty words and the desperate rant of a drowning Government.