Mr. Phil Hogan:

When I am trying to give money and support to rural development programmes in Greece, I cannot get satisfaction from the Greek authorities or even get replies to letters sent since last Christmas. There is more to this matter than what meets the eye or appears in the newspapers.

Senator Barrett referred to Aer Lingus. I will not get involved in any negotiations Irish authorities might be holding with the European Commission, especially in regard to competition matters. I am sure they are able to look after themselves without the help of anyone involved in agriculture and food.

I have a view on the Brexit, however. I hope the European Union will benefit from the continued membership of the United Kingdom. I had the privilege of addressing the National Farmers Union in the UK recently. Following a good debate on the pros and cons of membership, farmers in the union voted to pass a resolution on campaigning to stay in the EU. The rural community in the UK is positively disposed towards the benefits of membership. I do not think there is a desire among the community to open negotiations on a free trade agreement between the EU and the UK when there is already access to a population of 500 million and an internal market that works fairly well. However, I believe the UK is on to something with its argument that we need to change the way we operate to better reflect the role of national parliaments and subsidiarity in the implementation of policies.