In this article, Independent TD, Danny Healy-Rae, expresses concerns over reductions in the national herd.
The Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, denied in October last year that the government were trying to reduce the national herd.
It has now become clear that they [the government] are trying to reduce the national herd and are encouraging farmers to slaughter their cattle.
They are also being enticed to let parts of their farms idle for five years through eco-schemes. The big question is what is going to happen after the five years as these lands will be gone useless.
Will the payment for the likes of a scrappage scheme – discussion of which has come to light in recent weeks – be tax-free as this money is to be drawn from Europe in the first place, or will it be taxed as income for the farmers?
I am totally opposed to the government’s idea of reducing production as farmers have worked hard for generations to build up their production to what they have now.
Also, of course, food security is of paramount importance to everyone on this island and always has been – the last famine was not that long ago.
Are we opening up a gap in the market for the South Americans to fill, and what will that actually mean to the so-called carbon footprint?
‘Why is all the focus on the cow?’
In a previous article, Independent TD, Danny Healy-Rae, stated that he is “very concerned and angered” with what he says are “so-called climate talks taking place in government with the Minister for Agriculture and the Minister for the Environment”.
He claims that these talks are taking place behind closed doors where farmers and farming representatives are having “no say whatsoever” in decisions about their future and their operation’s viability going forward.
He then went on to question, “why is all the focus on farming and the cow, and there are no discussions about targeting all the other sectors, including aviation”.
Read more on this article.
