Pat O'Neill (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

At some stage, we should have a debate on State bodies and the like. I was amazed, shocked and somewhat amused when, while listening to RTE's "Drivetime" on Monday evening and "Morning Ireland" yesterday, I heard the leader of the Green Party and someone from An Taisce giving their opinions on the climate change conference in Paris. There is a great responsibility on the Taoiseach and the Government officials attending the conference, but what I heard on the radio was amazing. The leader of the Green Party proposed that we should not expand our dairy or beef herd due to carbon footprints. I would remind him that we have the lowest carbon footprint of any food producer, as we have a grass-based system. He stated that we should concentrate on increasing prices and quality, but this country has the highest quality food and price is dictated by the world markets. We only have 4.5 million people and 80% of our food is exported. We cannot eat it all ourselves.

The contribution from the person from An Taisce yesterday morning was laughable. He proposed that not only should Ireland not increase its herds, but we should get rid of all of our animals and plant forests over the entire country. He wants to revert to a pre-Ice Age state. What will he do with the 275,000 people who are employed in agriculture, be it as farmers or direct employees? That represents 10% of total employment. Some 12.3% of total exports, amounting to €10 billion, come from the agricultural trade. Is An Taisce proposing that farmers and employees should be given chainsaws and pruners and told to look after all of the trees that we will sow? That is ludicrous. Anyone in receipt of State funding should be responsible in what he or she says on the nation's airwaves. All of the media has a responsibility to ensure that both sides of an argument are put forward. Planting the entire country under trees was a crazy suggestion.