General Election promise to Laois farmers delivered argues TD

Laois dairy farmer and Fine Gael TD Willie Aird has backed the setting up of a new Government Committee to retain Nitrates Derogation which he says was promised during the General Election.

The Portlaoise man with colleagues Keira Keogh and Pete Roche have today welcomed the establishment of the Cabinet Committee on Water Quality to secure the retention of the derogation from the EU Nitrates Directive which is designed to protect the environment.

Their party says this was a key commitment from Fine Gael during the general election campaign. Dep William Aird led the welcome for the committee in a statement to the Leinster Express / Laois Live.

“Fine Gael campaigned during the general election on the need for a Cabinet Committee on Water Quality chaired by the Taoiseach to coordinate water quality improvements across all sectors but crucially to secure Ireland’s nitrates derogation. This was a promise Tánaiste Simon Harris made to farmers in the general election," he said.

Dep Aird's colleague and now Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon explained why the derogation was important during the run up to the 2024 General Election. MORE BELOW PICTURE.

Willie Aird, Laois Fine Gael TD, James Kelly, Athy, Irish Grain Growers Chair and Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon at the IGG AGM in Portlaoise. Pic: Denis Byrne

“The nitrates derogation is a national asset on which a major sector of our economy depends. Ireland has a unique grass-based livestock production system with over 92pc of our agricultural land under grassland.

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“We want to secure the future of the sector for the benefit of all. The loss of the derogation would have significant negative impacts not only for the farmers directly affected but also on the wider agriculture sector and rural economy. That is why Fine Gael is committed to retaining it post-2025.

“Farmers are doing their bit to improve water quality, and we will support them in those efforts. But they should not be asked to do this alone as agriculture is not the only pressure on water quality," he said.

The final decision on whether Ireland retains the derogation rests in EU which has given a derogation from the Nitrates Directive which requires Member States to monitor the quality of waters and to identify areas that drain into polluted waters or at risk of pollution. These concern waters that due to agricultural activities are eutrophic or could contain a concentration of more than 50 mg/l of nitrates.