Fianna Fáil TD for Cavan-Monaghan Brendan Smith has called on the Minister for Agriculture to urgently implement more support measures for farmers and the agri-food sector during the public health emergency.
Deputy Smith explained, “The European Agriculture Commissioner announced some measures last week which are inadequate. I believe the Council of Ministers need to re-visit this issue as a matter of urgency. Minister Creed needs to work with likeminded States to come to a beneficial agreement for all.
“It is most disappointing to learn from a reply by the Agriculture Minister to my Dáil Question that the Council of Ministers meeting proposed for 27th and 28th of April has been cancelled. The Minister can only refer to a likely date for another meeting on the 13th May which is more than two weeks away. This is far from satisfactory. Circumstances in Europe have been evolving so quickly during this public health emergency and it is obvious that Farmers should not have to wait another two weeks for supports.
“The Agriculture Ministers and the Commissioner should be attaching much more urgency to the very difficult issues confronting this sector and put in place adequate supports without further delay,” concluded Deputy Smith.