Vol. 561 No. 3
91 Mr. Ferris asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food his views on the crisis now facing farmers in view of the exclusion of farmers' representatives from the final phase of the talks on a new social partnership deal. [4171/03]
There is no question of the farming pillar being in any way excluded from the partnership talks. They have engaged in partnership from its inception in 1987 through a series of agreements and are valued members of the process.
The mechanics of putting in place a new social partnership agreement has been in progress for a number of months and the process is still not fully concluded.
