Pat Moylan (Fianna Fail)

I welcome the Minister, Deputy Coughlan, and her officials to the House. I want to tell her how pleased the farming community is with her as Minister for Agriculture and Food. That has been recognised by all sides of this House. I am of the opinion that many of the farming organisations and farmers did not realise how much the Minister has delivered for them since she came to office. That is genuinely felt by the farming community.

The number of announcements that have been delivered through the post in the past three or four months on improvements the Minister has made for farmers and farming organisations speaks volumes about her work and that of her officials. I am aware the Minster depends on her officials to help her and work with her, and that is welcome.

On grant aid for farmers, in the past I worked with farmers on farm developments throughout the country. They strove to put in place proper housing with very little grant aid. Many of them developed their farms at that time without any grant aid. In some parts of the country the Minister is now giving 70% grant aid and 60% in other parts. From talking to farmers I am aware they are concerned about getting the work done and getting planning permission. I know the Minister has worked extremely hard to help them in every way possible but some problems may require her direct intervention in the coming months.

Animal housing is very important in terms of animal welfare. In the past, many farmers thought they had done a good job in putting up their slatted housing and getting their cattle indoors but they are now in a position to provide rubber matting on those slats for even greater comfort. As one travels the country one can see that farm housing is now on a par or better than what some of the residents of rural Ireland lived in during the 1960s.

I have strong view on slurry storage tanks, which I believe should be covered. Senator Mansergh commented earlier on lagoons but I do not agree with him. In the 1960s and early 1970s, many farmers built similar types of lagoons but in the 1980s and 1990s they covered many of them and provided housing for their stock. They were not a success because unless one takes on a huge cost, there is a risk to underground water sources. I have strong views on that.

There has been much talk about rural development and REPS. Many improvements in farming practice have resulted from REPS. The Minister spoke recently about spending €3 billion on these schemes and a 17% increase in payments, which must be a major encouragement for the 1.8 million farmers from disadvantaged areas involved.