Sarah O'Reilly (Aontú)

I thank the Minister of State for coming in to discuss this important motion. I thank the Fine Gael Group for putting it forward. The motion reads lovely and sounds nice. It notes the importance of agriculture to the Irish economy while totally ignoring the fact that this Government and those that preceded it have put Irish farmers to the pin of their collars through over-regulation and policy demands.

I am a member of the fisheries committee. Every week I listen to the stories of heartbroken fishermen who have a real love of their industry, which is now in total breakdown as the result of over-regulation. It is widely believed, including by some Members on the Fine Gael side of the House, that the fishermen were betrayed. They were let down at every turn by the Irish Administration, by weak politicians and by quiet voices in Europe. Sadly, I can see the same thing happening again. It is happening in slow motion in front of our eyes, but this time it is happening to our farmers.

The motion is correct in stating that there are thousands of jobs in farming, agriculture and food production but these jobs are not being protected by the current Government. The proposal by Ursula von der Leyen to remove the ring-fenced nature of the CAP is a direct threat to farmers' livelihoods. What is the Government going to do about that? Fine Gael says it is on the side of farmers and, in fact, many Fine Gael Senators and TDs are farmers and genuinely care. I hope they are not naive enough to believe that the system which obtains here and in Europe can be easily changed. If they believe that, they are in the wrong party. The Minister is not here, but I have a question for him. Does he support the rearmament of military forces within the EU, because that money has to come from somewhere? Farmers are not stupid. They know that, once money is not safeguarded, the agriculture budget can and will be reduced to make way for new priorities.

It is the same with the Mercosur agreement. This deal does not benefit the Irish agriculture industry at all. The Minister estimated that it will only cost the Irish beef industry €50 million but Meat Industry Ireland has estimated that it will cost €100 million to €130 million. I remind the Minister of State on the record that fishermen and Government officials were assured by Europe that Brexit would not affect Irish fishermen. That was a lie. I ask that the Minister of State to take note and take heed of what is being said. Brazilians are protesting this deal because they know it will lead to further deforestation. Irish farmers have jumped through hoops when it comes to sustainable farming and now the EU wants to import Brazilian beef when we have the best quality produce right here. You could not make it up. If the Minister of State believes that Europe cares about Irish agriculture, he is a fool.

I highlight the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General on the Government's TB eradication programme. The total spend on the programme is 76% more than the original estimate and yet, in 2024, we had the highest incidence rate in over 20 years. Since 2018, we have seen the incidence rate gradually getting higher and higher. Farmers have been vocal in saying that the programme is not working and yet, only last year, the then Minister, Deputy McConalogue, rejected very valid criticisms of the TB programme. The programme was failing for a long time. Instead of putting its hand up and admitting it was not working, the Government continued to pour millions into it. That is shocking. We now have another launch, that of the shiny new TB action plan. To be honest, however, this action plan is weak at best and watery at worst. We have to ask what is going to be the difference with this action plan. The IFA, the Irish Rural Association and the ICMSA have said there is no agreement with farmers on this plan. Under Australia's model of TB eradication, farmers and that country's department of agriculture work together and launch the plan. Are we going to pour more money into an action plan that sounds good but gets us nowhere closer to the eradication of TB? I have yet to be convinced.

There is genuine will here to champion Irish agriculture and I welcome the Private Members' motion but, like many across the farming sector, I do not believe this Government is putting the interests of farmers first in Europe.