Cork East Fianna Fáil general election candidate, Cllr Kevin O’Keeffe is very disappointed that there was a meeting of the European Council of Agricultural Ministers, on Monday, February 15th and no minister from Ireland, Minister Simon Coveney or any of his junior ministers attended it.
Some of the major issues on the agenda were the difficulties being experienced in the milk and pig sector, World Trade issues and animal welfare.
“Whilst all other countries had a senior minister present at this meeting, all we had was the secretary general of the Department of Agriculture & Food, Mr A O’Driscoll.
“Putting personal electioneering ahead of the needs of Irish farmers is not good enough.”
“Given that the agricultural sector in Ireland is the backbone of our rural economy, I question this outgoing Government’s commitment to the agri sector. Putting personal electioneering ahead of the needs of Irish farmers is not good enough. In these difficult times every opportunity to put Ireland’s case at European level has to be availed of”, Cllr O’Keeffe declared.
