It is a matter of considerable regret to all of us that problems in Irish farming are once again on the agenda of this House. It needs to be said very clearly that we are at one in seeking a resolution of these problems. I welcome the Minister's commitment as expressed in the last few sentences of his speech. He has to realise that our role is sometimes to cajole him, sometimes to encourage him, sometimes to push him a little harder, but always to try to ensure that an industry that is so central to the economic wellbeing of this country is properly looked after. Unfortunately, sometimes that is difficult to do because, in certain instances, matters outside our control impinge on the industry, as in this instance.
As Deputy Cowen pointed out, this House recently discussed the major crisis in the sheep industry. The crisis was partially resolved, although I understand the payments promised are still outstanding. However, that crisis still impinges on Irish agriculture because it is unresolved. More recently, we went through the first phase of the beef crisis. Again, little progress was made in dealing with it; it was not the type of progress necessary to put Irish beef farming on a sound footing, even if what happened since then had not taken place. We would still be in a crisis if the BSE situation had not occurred.
There is a level of despondency and worry in farming circles. It is difficult to express it but it is palpable. I attended a meeting last night at which a number of farmers were present. They are worried and they want to see action from the Minister and the Department. They particularly want to see the confusion cleared up as that is the most worrying aspect of this crisis. The level of misinformation, failure to address the problems and failure to come to terms with the need to take action are also worrying.
In newspaper reports before Easter a number of commentators were critical of Fianna Fáil for having used Private Members' time to discuss the controversy surrounding the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Higgins, and Niall Stokes, rather than using the time to address this issue. Deputy Cowen and the other Deputies who decided not to proceed with the beef issue on that occasion were right. They gave the Minister space and time to clear up some of the confusion. However, I am disappointed at the Minister's failure to make progress on that front. The time was poorly used.
Even if we were to forget the three most recent crises in agriculture, it must be said that, overall, Irish agriculture does not know where it is going. Some months ago the Minister was credited — although that is probably not the right word — with commenting on the future of cheques in the post. It was seen in farming circles as a negative comment. They are a major element of every farmer's take home pay. If they do not continue to arrive, and they probably will not, farmers must be reassured that the matter is being examined and dealt with and will not be an abyss into which Irish farmers will fall at some time in the future.
Farming is not the type of industry which can be sustained or which can generate confidence in itself in a vacuum. It needs support and it is important that the industry is sustained. We need to know where we stand in the EU and where we are going in terms of GATT. We also need a long-term policy that charts a future for Irish agriculture. The only worthwhile analysis of agriculture I have seen in the recent past has come from the farming organisations. It is frequently dismissed as scaremongering or self-serving publicity. I suppose it contains such an element because that is part of the farming organisations' job. However, there is also evidence of a need for this State to decide if it is serious about agriculture. The evidence is that it is not.
In fairness, part of the present crisis is outside our control. The handling of the BSE situation by the British was truly appalling and defies all understanding. It is also a problem that the disease occurs at all. However, the response to the crisis is our responsibility. Our response has been weak. What is fundamentally wrong with the response — and I accept the truth of everything the Minister has said about what he has done — is the fact that it has not been recognised that there are farmers in parishes throughout the country whose livelihoods are dependent on this industry at one level or another. If farmers cannot continue to live in those communities it will mean the end of the communities. It will not matter what fancy policies we put in place or what well-intentioned rural development programmes we produce if these people cannot live and provide an income for themselves in the communities of which they are a part.
We must also acknowledge that it is very difficult for the majority of farmers to make a living and rear a family on an Irish farm. Anybody who looks realistically at the type of struggle farming entails for 90 per cent of the people who depend on agriculture must realise that there is a constant element of worry for every farmer in ensuring that there is enough to provide for their families in terms of basic necessities. That is the fundamental role of Irish agriculture in rural areas.
This crisis has brought the industry as a whole, including workers and their dependants, into the centre of the picture. In the course of every debate this House has held on agriculture since the formation of the present Government, Democratic Left has produced a speaker to engage in a tirade of farmer bashing which is truly disgraceful. I have difficulty believing that the electors of those Deputies would be sufficiently impressed to vote for them on the basis of some of the performances we have seen. The Government parties have a responsibility to prevent such attacks which do enormous damage. They might be laughed off in the Chamber but every bit of mud thrown has an effect, and some of it sticks. It is destabilising, extremely unhelpful and it must be dealt with at Government level. Failure to deal with it will lead to the inevitable conclusion that this Government is not committed to the farming community.
It is fair to congratulate Deputy Cowen and the other members of the Fianna Fáil delegation who undertook the trip to Iran. In advance of the trip they must have felt there were risks attached to themselves in addition to the grave possibility that they would not get any credit or benefit for the industry. However, the trip was beneficial. In Ireland, more than anywhere else, we should know that where dialogue is kept alive and where people can meet and talk, progress can be made. I welcome the Minister's response to the trip. It was less negative than much of what has emanated heretofore from official sources. The official response was small and mean minded; it bordered on nasty. Perhaps some people felt the visit by the Fianna Fáil delegation exposed Government inaction on the issue. However, if we wish to confront this serious situation we must be prepared, to some extent at least, to accommodate the assistance of every element in reaching a solution.
Another matter has been omitted from the agenda. We have looked to agriculture to provide the indigenous raw material for a huge job sector. It has done that reasonably successfully and, in some cases, very successfully. However, the situation we have encountered in recent weeks has shown how quickly an entire industry can be undermined and virtually grind to a standstill. We need to address that aspect as part of a policy for agriculture — which we do not have — and its industrial offshoots. We must know what direction we are taking.
The role of the live cattle trade has tended to be overshadowed and, to some extent, forgotten. However, it is very important. Before the BSE scare it was subject to attack from animal rights activists who might have had a case. However, the case was overstated and there was no balance in how it was handled.
Of course, it is necessary to ensure access to ports for the export of cattle and to ensure that those who took the risk of buying and exporting those cattle get paid. If one is dealing with markets where monetary payments are impossible, an element of barter must be put in place. The industry must be helped. Those charged with developing, promoting and assisting Irish trade must play a meaningful and worthwhile role in ensuring that that very important and slightly unfashionable outlet for Irish beef remains open and viable and continues to be developed.
Deputy Cowen mentioned the need to address the concerns of consumers, a sector which we have ignored, perhaps more than any other sector. However, the day came when consumers could no longer be ignored. The consumer started to ask questions and in answer, misinformation was placed before him or her —"her" is more important in this instance because women are more likely to make these purchasing choices.
We have nothing to hide in regard to the Irish beef industry but we have sometimes behaved as if we had. We have not been good at making the facts available or allowing consumers access to the information they demand. The Minister might say that is not the direct responsibility of his Department, with which I would partly agree, however, it is the Government's responsibility to draw the threads together and ensure that somebody is responsible.
I am extremely concerned about the downstream effect of holding huge numbers of cattle in fattening sheds, and the fact there is not an outlet for them, on calf and weanling producers. While this situation continues everyone is a loser. The smaller producer is ultimately the most vulnerable, will pay the high price and is the most likely to go out of business because he does not have the necessary resources.
I join with Deputy Cowen in calling on the Minister to ensure immediate payment of the second round of REPS and outstanding extensification grants, 22 month premia and other grants. There are outstanding grants for buildings and so on. The whole grants system is a mess and is extremely unsatisfactory. Field staff must be treated much better in terms of expenses and being allowed to do their work. The Government as a whole needs to address the problem of the pay of lower paid civil servants.
The Minister introduced a charter of rights, which I welcome. However, it is no good announcing a charter of rights if the groundwork has not been laid and the charter cannot be delivered on. The charter is not working. It is not having the effect the Minister envisaged and which we would like to support him on delivering.
