Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

As I said, I am a member of the Oireachtas joint committee. It was my understanding from the paper briefing I have that a group would be established. We have now heard it will be a study. There is a very subtle difference between a focused named group of people and a study. There is some ambiguity about that. The Minister of State might ask the Department to come back to us on that. If a group is being established, who will be represented on it? Will the Irish Farmers Association, the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association and Macra na Feirme be represented? It is my strong view and recommendation they should be represented on it? They are major stakeholders in agriculture as are the other smaller agricultural groups. That is one key issue.

There is no ambiguity about the message here. For the record, this was the fifth such extension to the exemption and it will run until 2023. It was never intended the exemption would extend in perpetuity. I anticipate this will be the final extension. That is putting it up to everyone and we have time on our side. The Minister of State's Department needs to engage also with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Would he bring a message to the Minister requesting that there would be proactive discussion and engagement with the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine on this issue? That is another critical component of this debate. I ask that we would have meaningful and constructive engagement and that representatives of the farm organisations and communities would be part of this review. A review group is somewhat, I would suggest, better than a study group. Let us have environmental people included also, indeed, everyone concerned, and a meaningful engagement. We now have sufficient time to do that in the run up to an exemption that will run out in January 2023.