Mary Ann O'Brien (Independent) | Oireachtas source

No, for certain, we do not. I am absolutely against GMOs. Standards are very different in the US compared to here, so it is important that we should protect our standards here. I would be interested to hear the Commissioner's opinions and work on this matter. Does the Commissioner have a timeline in mind as to when that agreement will be finalised?

Fluoride is one of my favourite subjects and I will never exhaust it. Ireland is the only country in Europe that allows fluoride in the public water supply. As far as I am aware, no study has ever been done on the effects of fluoride on our aquaculture, agriculture or eco-system. It is in our water and is going into our systems and farmlands. The Minister, Deputy Coveney, is doing a wonderful job. The Commissioner knows the economic effects of the great work he has done in agriculture, including the beef sector and the lifting of milk quotas. Would it not be awful if I was right about fluoride having a detrimental effect on our added-value products?

I welcome the simplification of the Common Agricultural Policy and all the work the Commissioner has brought forward. I have sat in on all the meetings of the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Hopefully the Commissioner will be home for a few days and as he drives around Ireland he will see grants coming in for young farmers and there is a lot happening with sucklers, beef and mixed quotas. The reality, however, is that if one drives around the country it can be a depressing and sometimes frightening experience because small towns are dying.

We talk a lot here about the lack of rural development, which is the reality. I am glad Commissioner Hogan is in the driving seat. I know he is handling the agriculture portfolio for the whole of Europe but he should not forget about rural Ireland for one moment because we need a lot of help, direction and focus to get us there. Most Senators drive all over the country every week and they know that it is not a pretty picture on the ground. People are hurting greatly.