The Minister of State is very welcome. Today I would like to raise a couple of issues regarding farm safety. I also welcome the extension to the new PTO shaft cover scheme of two weeks. The two weeks are very welcome. As everybody knows, a lot of farm accidents have occurred with uncovered shafts in the last number of years. Farmers have bought into it. I see the worth in extending that. I urge farmers out there to have a look at the shafts regarding PTO driven machinery. If it is in a state of disrepair, please us…

I, too, declare that I am a member of the NARGC and have been for a number of years. I was nominated by it to stand for election to this House. Members of the House will be aware the National Parks and Wildlife Service and the National Regional Game Councils of Ireland agreed a memorandum of understanding, MOU, providing a clear and positive framework for collaboration, communication and shared objectives in the protection and management of Ireland's natural heritage. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy O'Sulliva…

I wish to set the record straight regarding rural pursuits and fox hunting. I have watched a number of debates over the last number of weeks and I have listened to media reports of foxes in fields being torn apart. We have listened to all this negativity in the media regarding fox hunting, which is described as a sport. It is not a sport and it is not done as a sport. The media has portrayed it as a sport. It is not just for the gentry. I hunt. I shoot. I am not gentry. I am a farmer. Foxes can get out of control a…

Today I raise an issue once again that, unfortunately, affects the farming community. This week, four of our major supermarkets have decided to have a price war regarding the price of milk. This sector, where farmers produce liquid milk, has seen 43% of liquid milk producers leaving in the last ten years, which is highly worrying. We have seen costs increase. We have seen outputs decrease. I urge these four retailers to move away from the Irish farming sector. If they want a price war, move it into the coffee indus…

I thank the Minister of State for taking the time to be here today. I, too, would like to address some of the issues regarding the Sligo to Dublin rail line. As the Minister of State knows, we have two train stops in the county of Longford, one in Longford town and one in Edgeworthstown. The one in Edgeworthstown catered for the whole of the Cavan-north Longford region where we have seen a huge influx of people. Where this can have a huge effect is that house prices in Longford are approximately €320,000-odd. We ha…

I wish to raise an issue of caution for our farming community. We have seen record prices being paid for cattle over recent months. Last week, we saw a springer heifer in my local area making €15,500 at Carrigallen mart. I caution the farming community that everything has a ceiling, and everything has a price and a fail value. There are a number of sales coming up, and there seems to be panic among farmers that they must meet targets to match up with the ICBF star rating. However, and this is where I have a concern…

The Minister of State is very welcome. I welcome the capital budget for agriculture. The Minister, Deputy Heydon, has secured an additional €170 million in budget 2026. That is a 9% increase, from €158 million last year to €170 million this year, bringing the Department's budget to over €2.3 billion. This includes a capital programme of €335 million. The Minister, Deputy Heydon, got what he has worked for after listening to local representatives and people from the farming sector. This is one budget of five in whic…

I would like to be associated with all of the comments about Senator Andrews. I would also like to discuss the Ryder Cup and what Europe achieved in the past week. We are proud of one of our own who made the final putt to secure the Ryder Cup for the European team. It is very special and will live not only in the minds of every golfer in Ireland but in the European team to have had such a comeback. In fairness, the Americans have to be commended on their comeback. However, that is not why I rise today. I want to sp…

I move: That Seanad Éireann: acknowledges: - the importance of agriculture to rural Ireland and the Irish economy; - the thousands of jobs in farming, agriculture and food production sectors; - the dependency in many years on the weather to profits in farming; - the importance of food security to a growing world population; - the key role that the Common Agriculture Payment plays in Irish farming; - the importance of the nitrates derogation to Irish farming, particularly dairying; - the establishment of the Cabinet…

I thank the Minister for coming to the Chamber. As he knows, the agricultural sector is well represented in the House by me and my colleagues. The farming sector feels it is the first time it has ever had a strong voice. We are glad to have the Minister as head of the agricultural sector. Last week, the National Ploughing Championships showcased what the agricultural sector is all about, what it supports and, really and truly, the impact it has on rural Ireland. It is a very strong industry that has to be supported…

Duly noted.

I will give a quick summary and wrap up. I thank the Minister of State for being in the House today and the Minister, Deputy Heydon, for taking the time out. I wish him well in the negotiations. Everyone knows there will be give and take on both sides of the House to get the budget across the line. TB has been mentioned. I will clarify something in the new TB programme which people might not be aware of. We asked the Minister, Deputy Heydon, about it in the past. When a badger was tested under the old programme, it…

I congratulate all our sporting icons who took part in the World Athletics Championships. As we saw on our televisions in recent days, we have some array of talent coming on in the future. It would be remiss of me not to mention our Longford man, Cian McPhillips, who was very unlucky not to win a medal on Saturday. He is only 23 years old. He was 0.2 seconds off the bronze medal place and set another personal best and an Irish record. The future of sport and the 800 m is very bright. I wish Cian and all the athlete…

I raise an issue of daylight robbery, simply, and I will use that phrase. We have seen the meat processors again this week reducing the price of lamb by another 20 cent per kilogramme. Everybody knows what happened in the beef sector over the past number of years, where the same processors have brought the decline of cattle into a state where now we see almost 3,700 fewer cattle killed this week than during the same period last year. Cattle numbers have declined. Sheep farmers all over Ireland are now getting hamme…

I hope that chess will be recognised as a sport rather than a game. Chess is a competitive sport where two players are deeply enthralled in a mind game that takes a serious amount of concentration for a number of hours. It is a global game. It has Olympic recognition and chess has been recognised as a sport by the International Olympic Committee since 2002. It was an event at the Asian Games and before the Pan American Games, Russia has been trying to bring it in as an Olympic sport. It has European recognition. On…

Even just five minutes would be enough.

I address the House about something that happened at the weekend. I visited Dublin last weekend to see a band called Kingfishr in Fairview Park. I compliment the Dublin councils for putting on the events they run. It makes us Irish and unique that we have such talent, including bands like Kingfishr, Amble - one of its members is from my area - The Tumbling Paddies and The Whistlin' Donkeys. These are all groups that are homegrown, like Aslan, U2 and Riverdance. They are the people who sell Ireland for what it reall…

I wish to raise an issue regarding St. Joseph's Care Centre in Longford, where the HSE is providing a new building. It has come to light that the physiotherapy unit will be moved out of that area. This unit provides a huge service in Longford and simply cannot be moved from the site it is on. We were given assurances from the previous Minister, Stephen Donnelly, it would not be moved and I hope his successor will assure the people of Longford that this service will remain on the campus, where it has always been.

The Minister of State is welcome to the House. It is my first time to meet him in person. It is my first time to be elected to the Senate but I have always represented rural communities and farmers. I am a farmer myself and have in the past studied farmers' dissatisfaction with where the beef sector was. I will provide some statistics I am sure the Minister of State is well aware of. The sector is responsible for the stewardship of 4.5 million ha of agricultural land in Ireland and over 800,000 ha of forestry. It c…

I want to address something that has again raised its head in the last number of weeks. In the beef and lamb sector we have seen beef and lamb prices falling steadily. However, all over Europe we have seen an increase in beef and lamb prices. Members of the House may be aware that we have an independent agrifood regulator in this country. Over the last year the regulator has published price and market analysis on two sectors, namely, the egg and the horticultural sectors. I hope the regulator will now look at the b…