Erin McGreehan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Cathaoirleach for accepting my Commencement matter. I welcome the Minister of State to the House. It is great to have a Minister of State from the Department of agriculture. I do not always get one when I am speaking about agricultural issues. Today I want to highlight the plight of north Louth farmers who have been severely impacted by the recent floods and the importance of providing financial assistance to these farmers. This cannot be overstated. It is crucial for their individual recovery and for the overall agricultural sector, the regional economy, the local economy and the importance that farming families play in the north Louth economy.

Recent floods have left a trail of destruction. If the Minister of State looks on TV or any of my social media posts she will see the devastation it has caused. Crops and fodder have been absolutely destroyed. Valuable infrastructure such as fields and fences have been damaged and completely changed. This catastrophe has left many farmers not knowing how to rebuild their lives or their businesses.

Why should we care about the recovery of north Louth farmers? As the Minister of State and the Department know, the answer is very simple. It is the responsibility of the Department to support our farming families. Agriculture forms the backbone of our economy, no more than in north Louth. Farms provide us with the food we eat. They contribute significantly to the local and national economy. By supporting north Louth farmers we are not only supporting them in securing the future of our food supply but we are safeguarding their livelihoods and their families.

Financial assistance is essential to farmers to repair and replace damaged equipment and infrastructure. It is also essential to support farmers as we move into the new season which, as the Minister of State knows, brings new challenges and responsibilities. Lambing is starting in north Louth. People are getting their fields ready for silage, tillage or whatever they will be doing from spring onwards. An awful lot of the land is damaged. An awful lot of the infrastructure is damaged. Rivers have been rerouted and there is no ability to spend the moneys needed to fix them. There is damage to our fish stocks.

Not one departmental official has got back to me. I feel very disappointed and let down by the Department. I want the Minister of State and the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, to intervene in this and to support farmers, who are environmentally conscious. They are looking at fish leaving the rivers and going into fields and dying. This is only one issue.The Department has made significant moves in getting people onto environmental schemes, with money expended. Fences that were partly paid for by grants from the Department have been broken down. What happens when land is disregarded and not farmed? I have received no answers from the Department about whether farmers will be able to get an allowance this year in the form of grants, GLAS or other financial assistance if they cannot afford to fix their fences. This is a cashflow problem. Businesses and homes were taken care of. If farm sheds had been burned down, FBD or whatever insurer a farmer used would have been able to cover it.

This is a natural disaster. I do not use that term lightly. It is devastating. There are fields with holes 10 ft deep, so it is not just a case of bringing out the front loader and filling in a few gaps. This is a case of using a Hymac and hiring people at approximately €500 per day for several days to restore land. What happens when the Department performs a flyover and sees that the land is not in use? The farmer will be penalised. Not once have I received an answer from the Department about this. I beg the Minister of State and the Minister to intervene and support the farmers in north Louth.