Paul Daly (Fianna Fail)

The Taoiseach will not be surprised if I raise the issue of agriculture with him. He knows its importance and I compliment him. There are a number of issues coming down the track to us in agriculture, such as the CAP negotiations, the Mercosur deal, etc. in which the Taoiseach and the Minister will play a big role, in the back end of next year during our Presidency.

There is, however, the big issue of the nitrates derogation. We have had this conversation so the Taoiseach knows it is the big issue. I thank the Taoiseach because he has raised the derogation at the highest level with Commission President von der Leyen, and she gets it too, I believe. Irish farmers are in limbo. We have been sent over a list of stuff to do and we have agreed to do it. There are 76 days until the current derogation runs out on 1 January. We have agreed to do the appropriate assessments and include the habitats directive, etc., but that will take closer to 76 months to complete, yet we have not been told whether there will be an extension. The Taoiseach needs to prioritise this. I compliment the Taoiseach on the Cabinet water quality committee. We are doing everything in the right direction, but there are farmers going to start out in January not knowing whether they have a derogation. The issue will not wait until the Presidency and needs to be prioritised. In thanking the Taoiseach for what he has done so far, this must be done because farmers must know whether they have a derogation on 1 January as they set out for next year's farming.