When the debate was adjourned yesterday I said that it would be in the interest of many small farmers to fertilise their land and grow grass as they did last year but they were unable to do so unless some assistance was provided for them to purchase fertilisers and manures. Credit should be made freely available, interest free, from some source to enable smallholders in particular to keep their stock of calves and young cattle. It was disgraceful on the part of the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries and the Minister for Industry and Commerce to decontrol animal food on the 20th December last. The Minister stated this was done on the advise of farming organisations. It was the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, on the advice of the Minister for Industry and Commerce, who called in the farming organisations and advised them if they accepted it this way they would do better. Both Ministers have reneged their responsibilities to the farmers by decontrolling the price of animal food. It is far better to have some control than have no control at all.
The manner in which the increase in the price of fertilisers was handled was disgraceful. The manufacturers, the compounders and the importers must have known in advance they were going to get an increase because around Christmas, when many farmers tried to buy in some fertilisers and manures, they could not get them because the merchants and the co-ops did not have any in stock. Once the increase was announced, CIE were kept very busy supplying all the merchants and the co-ops throughout the country. There was a lot of stockpiling. Many of the merchants and the co-ops are fed up with the way in which this business was handled. It will take a tremendous effort to restore confidence if the small farmer is to produce cattle and pigs at a desirably high level.
The Minister cannot allow prices like this to develop again. The pig industry is in a very bad state. Things are so bad that thousands of sows in young are being slaughtered weekly because the price of feedingstuff has gone up so high. It is uncontrolled and no new markets are being opened up for bacon. I suggest a few ways to the Minister by which he could improve the situation. The EEC and the banks should be asked to make more money available to farmers. Rate collectors should be asked to go easy between now and the 31st March particularly in relation to the smallholders. The Minister should ask his colleague to give back to the small farmers the medical cards which were taken from them last year. The dole to small farmers should be increased. Interest free loans should be made available to enable farmers to provide feed for young and unfinished cattle and also to enable them to rear bonhams.
The Minister should do something positive about opening up an export market for calves. A special case could be made to the EEC for subsidies. Other countries have done this and we should also be able to do it. Some form of assistance should be made available immediately for the small farmers. Unlike big farmers, they cannot hold out under the present depression in their industry. The Government should make available the additional money coming in under VAT particularly in relation to the substantial increases imposed on farm feedingstuffs. Last night the Minister said that we should get away from insularity of outlook and realise that we are now a remote island on the perimeter of Europe. I cannot understand the Minister's statement here.