Peadar Tóibín

Road safety is not being taken seriously by this Government; that is a fact. We have all the legislation but no enforcement. Legislation does not mean tuppenny damn if we do not enforce it. Let us consider the new legislation the Government's bought in yesterday for scramblers. I have spoken to representatives of the Garda. They say gardaí do not have the ability or the right to pursue an individu…

The death of Grace Lynch as a result of a scrambler was a shocking loss of life. It was shocking to her family, friends and community. We welcome the legislation that was brought before Cabinet today. However, there is an issue in relation to enforcement. Incredibly, gardaí are currently not trained to pursue a person on a scrambler or electric scooter. At the moment, there is no legal protection …

There is no training.

Training helps.

Training.

There is no training.

9. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Taoiseach p=for an update on the programme for Government. [3830/26]

Today is World Cancer Day. I am a cancer survivor. I am lucky. I am in good health. I have seen the improvements in science and medicine which save lives every day. However, I have also seen first hand the fact that the State's health system discriminates against some people who have cancer. I will give the Taoiseach a number of examples. There were a quarter of a million fewer people who had cer…

Could we take just one question now?

13. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department has undertaken any analysis on the scope of potential job losses or profit losses which may be faced by farmers in Ireland as a result of the Mercosur trade deal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5981/26]

We all know that Mercosur will have a significantly detrimental effect on farmers throughout the country. The Minister mentioned the headline figures for the damage it will do to the sector. What kind of modelling and research has the Department done in relation to the downward pressure it will have on farmers’ incomes and the loss of jobs that Mercosur, if implemented, will create in the sector?

The Minister talks about resilience. A third of farmers are making their living off the farm, according to Teagasc, a third are only making a living because someone in the household is working off the farm, and a full third are currently either going into debt or are in poverty. That is an incredible figure. Every year, the number of farmers is reducing in this country. The Minister is saying ther…

The problem is that anybody can pick an individual year and say, "This year is above the previous year." The fact is that in the previous year Irish farm incomes were extremely low. In the beef sector they were a fraction of the average industrial wage in this country. Most beef farmers in this country were making a fraction of the average industrial wage two years ago. Plucking last year as an ex…

It is not the same. Why can the Minister not push back against-----

Why can the Minister not push back-----

Why can the Minister not push back against the deal being implemented?

Much of the country is inundated with floodwater at the moment. The Government cannot control the weather, but it can control the delivery of flood defences and the forecasting systems that can protect people in this country. In those two areas, the Government has been a disaster. Two years ago, I asked the Minister for public expenditure the timeframes for the delivery of flood defence schemes in…

I can remember a long list of Ministers splashing around floods in their top boots for photographs. I can even remember former Minister Joan Burton falling out of a canoe when looking at a flood system. None of this gives any confidence at all to people who are being inundated at the moment. The Tánaiste talks about the critical infrastructure. My problem with the Tánaiste is that he has been here…

I am just saying that everybody should be treated equally.

I am saying it because cars are not being paid for.

Fine Gael used to be known as the farmers' party but those days are well over.

Its MEPs voted against farmers last week in Strasbourg. Today, its Minister for agriculture, Deputy Heydon, when I asked him whether he would use his office to stop Mercosur from being implemented before the European courts make a decision, he stated that he would not and that it was another Department's responsibility.

The Government also refused to hold Bord Bia and its chairperson, Larry Murrin, to account. He has the job of promoting Irish food and I understand he is paid just under €200,000 to do it. Instead of that, he is actually importing Brazilian beef. This is a conflict of interest and the fact that the Government’s judgment does not understand that shows it is compromised on this. It is, "Do what I sa…

Exactly. The Minister said he would not do it.

No. There is no misrepresentation here at all.