Sarah O'Reilly
Agricultural Panel · Aontú · Ireland
“I support Senator Harmon in everything she has said. I want to raise the ongoing crisis in assessments of need and the impact this is having on families in Cavan and Monaghan. Earlier this year, I was helping a mother whose young son had been offered a place in an early intervention preschool.”
“In Cavan and Monaghan alone there are 578 overdue assessments. I commend Cara Darmody on continuing to shine a light on this issue. She is absolutely right when she says children are missing the window for early intervention. We all know that the earlier a child gets support, the better the outcome. These early years are precious.”
“Parents should not have to pay out of their own pocket because the State has failed to meet its own legal obligations. Disability teams continue to be short-staffed while many newly qualified therapists and psychologists cannot get the supervised placements and recognised experience they need to practise.”
“She has already had two near misses, as she calls them, that left her badly shaken. She describes Cavan's footpaths as being like a racetrack and says she dreads leaving her home now. That should not be the case. This is not just about an inconvenience.”
“I also welcome the delegation from Canada. They are very welcome. I have three sons living and working in Manitoba, Souris and Brandon. I bring up the issue of e-scooters. Imagine being afraid every time you step outside your own front door. That is a daily occurrence for a visually impaired woman living in Cavan town.”
“People had to take long detours just to get to school. The Department said that inspections carried out in March 26 found around 130 roads needed complete reconstruction, 440 had significant damage and several bridges could no longer be used. I believe those figures cover the entire country. My question is simple.”
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“I, too, want to support what Senator Gallagher said earlier. I want to speak about the Dublin and Monaghan bombings in 1974. The Kenova report confirms what families in Monaghan have known for over 50 years, which is that the British state played a central and shameful role in the murder of Irish citizens, North and South. My thoughts are with the families of the 34 people who lost their lives and with the many more who still carry the trauma of that horrific day -over 300 of them. The Dublin-Monaghan bombings were a horrific atrocity and yet the truth of what happened has been buried, obstructed and denied for decades. Kenova lays bare corruption, criminality and cover-ups at the highest levels of the British state.”
“There must be guaranteed access to independent advocates. How often is capacity assessed? What protections are in place to ensure their capacity is supported rather than assumed to be absent? These children deserve the strongest possible safeguards.”
“I am concerned about this group of amendments, which relate to children who the subject of care orders. We are speaking about some of the most vulnerable children in the State. We know they may be admitted to acute mental hospital units without having the capacity to consent to this and often without anyone truly speaking for them. The Government amendments acknowledge the role of guardians ad litem but they require notification only if they have already been appointed. Should it not be the case that guardians ad litem would always be made available in these circumstances? Otherwise, who exactly is advocating for a child's wishes when they face admission to an acute unit? Children in care, especially those aged over 16 who are deemed to have less capacity, are at exceptional risk of having their voices lost in the system.”
“This raises an unavoidable question: how can the Government justify maintaining a system that allows such prolonged delays when the evidence shows earlier reviews are both necessary and appropriate? I know of, and have spoken with, people who were wrongly detained and whom the Minister has not engaged with, despite their best efforts to make submissions on this legislation to her, the health committee and the Department. The Minister has a responsibility to engage with disabled persons' organisations, DPOs, and I wonder why that has not occurred. The Leader alluded to this last week.”
“I welcome the Minister of State and I welcome the Bill. She has put a lot of time and effort into it but we must do our job of scrutinising it. I share the sentiments expressed by Senator Black. I support amendments Nos. 83 and 84. People have had their liberty eroded due to being wrongly involuntarily detained. Like my fellow Senators, I want to know why the Government is refusing to follow the expert review group's recommendation of a 14-day time limit on review hearings. Currently, with extensions, people can wait up to 28 days before their detention is reviewed. People are being left almost a month without any independent oversight. The Mental Health Commission reports that 70% of involuntary admissions were revoked within a month.”
“We need to ensure there is an emergency winter payment for people with disabilities. The reality is that there is an urgent need, and it must be addressed.”
“The Government, the Minister for disability and the Department know that disabled people have increased costs to meet and that one in five of those who cannot work due to disability lives in consistent poverty. They have that data and the Department has that data; they are aware and they know. They have commissioned reports that clearly show the increased costs associated with disability. It cannot be a lack of awareness but rather, I have to assume, a lack of care. How else can you explain away the cuts made in the recent budget? I ask the Government to please not abandon disabled people who have been forced into protesting just so they can afford food and heating. I would appreciate this being brought to the Minister's attention, and I will raise it at the social protection committee.”
“A number of disability advocates are outside the gates of Leinster House today. We all agree they should not have to be here, but they are. They feel the need to impress upon us the dire circumstances they find themselves in. Budget 2026 was an opportunity to enact real change for the disability sector, but in reality it left disabled people worse off by more than €1,000 in some cases. We saw the €400 disability support grant wiped out as well as the €250 electricity credit. These were key supports for homes already living in energy poverty. What is the result of these cuts? Disabled people are being forced to choose between buying food or turning on their heating. That is unacceptable in any case but in a country such as Ireland, it is a complete failure by the State.”
“The Government must also ensure quality is not sacrificed. Many providers, though not all, are receiving substantial funding for food that simply is not up to standard, and that is unacceptable. To get value for this investment, it cannot be just a tick-box exercise. I want to see children who need a hot meal receive appetising and nutritious food and that is not happening currently. We must always ensure the taxpayer, who is footing the bill for these schemes, gets value for money.”
“Many schools are now expected to have dedicated food-heating rooms and for smaller or rural schools these demands are just not possible; they are unrealistic. The Joint Committee on Education and Youth heard that 112 schools have been affected by the withdrawal of just two suppliers. At the same time, there are hundreds of schools across the country that have chosen not to participate at all. No child should arrive to school hungry but I know the quality of some of these meals leaves a lot to be desired. It is not good; it is poor. A lot of food provided is dumped straight into the bin by parents when children come home from school and parents end up packing lunches for the children anyway. Will the Government revisit the current guidelines, consult properly with teachers and school staff, and ensure the programme is workable for schools?”
“I recently saw that €330 million was allocated in the budget to the hot school meals programme. That is a huge amount of expenditure and it is a new item of expenditure in the budget. Yet, across Cavan and Monaghan, it is now becoming clear that the new bureaucracy surrounding the serving of these meals is pushing providers out of the scheme altogether. In recent weeks, I have been contacted by teachers who have been formally instructed by their unions not to place pre-prepared meals in school ovens. This follows a wave of providers withdrawing and leaving hundreds of schools uncertain about whether their pupils will continue to receive a hot meal every day. The new food safety and procurement guidelines issued by the schools procurement unit, SPU, and the FSAI have dramatically raised the bar for compliance.”
“We need a commitment to restore the number of kilometres maintained annually to pre-deficit levels, as well as an increase in funding that matches inflation and meets the demands of our road network, which now supports nearly 3 million vehicles. This additional traffic also has to be taken into account but I do not think it has been.”
“I thank the Minister of State for his reply but the response will be no consolation to the people of Cavan. Inflation has eroded the value of road funding and that has resulted in fewer kilometres of road being maintained. In 2022 and 2023, the price of bitumen increased by 62%. That is not being allowed for in the allocations of money from the Department. Inflation is not an unforeseen crisis. It has been a consistent pressure for years, yet funding levels have not been adjusted in a way that protects the actual output on the ground. How does the Department plan to address the €95 million deficit in the years between 2008 and 2023? A decade and a half of underinvestment cannot be solved with minor annual uplifts. We are simply not going to see the roads in Cavan and Monaghan improve. That is the truth.”
“There are roads in my area where school bus drivers, postal workers and delivery people refuse to go down because they are too bad. The Government is literally and politically patching over the problem. We need serious, sustained investment to address the backlog and restore our roads to a safe standard.”
“That is a reduction of approximately 50% in the number of kilometres maintained at a time when the wear and tear on our roads has increased dramatically. We have 1 million more vehicles on the roads today than we had in 2015. That is more cars, SUVs, lorries, and commercial vehicles. It will come as no surprise to the Minister of State that Cavan has the highest NCT failure rate in the country. The failure rate is predominantly due to steering and suspension issues. That is as a result of the poor condition of our roads. It is no coincidence that vehicles are failing where the roads are at their worst. As Senator Tully said, people pay motor tax, fuel tax and tolls. The very least they should expect is a decent road surface to get to work on.”
“In 2024, despite spending €117 million, nearly two and a half times more, the number of kilometres maintained stayed the same. Costs have outpaced investment. This means that every euro buys less road maintenance than before. How are the roads in Cavan going to improve when fewer kilometres are being maintained? When I started on the council in 2017, we were overlaying and doing maintenance on 23 km of roads in my municipal district. We did 11 km last year. I know that the funding is increasing, but it is not even matching the cost of inflation. Despite funding for the municipal district rising from €1.2 million to €3.5 million, the number of kilometres has reduced. Does the Minister of State understand that we have gone from 23 km down to 11 km a year? That is not good enough.”
“Earlier this year, I welcomed the announcement of an 11% increase in funding for rural roads in Cavan and Monaghan, but the reality is that this increase does not come close to addressing the shortfall in funding between 2008 and 2023. That is where the real problem lies. We experienced a €95 million shortfall in the road development and maintenance in our county during those years. That shortfall has never been replaced. At the moment, our roads start to crumble if we get a little bit of frost or bad weather. I am sure the Minister of State can appreciate that, due to such a significant drop in funding for 15 years, carrying out maintenance is like papering over cracks. Government investment does not match the increase in costs either. In 2015, local authorities spent €48 million maintaining 361 km of regional roads.”
“I agree with everything that Senator Tully said. I welcome the Minister of State to the Chamber today, but I am disappointed that the Minister for Transport is not here. I have been trying to get a debate with him on this issue but he is proving to be elusive. I want to thank the Minister of State for engaging on this important matter. I want to focus on a matter that affects every commuter, farmer, small business and family in Cavan and Monaghan, that is, the ongoing deterioration of our roads and particularly our rural road network. In my constituency, the condition of the roads is just awful. They are really poor. Anyone driving a tractor, lorry or bus in the area could be forgiven for thinking they are on a boat with all of the rocking and rolling, as well as the potholes, patched parts and sinking roads.”
“The choice created by this advert is sit in the cold and freeze or feel guilty for trying to stay alive by lighting a fire to keep warm, thereby, inadvertently but slowly, killing your neighbours and friends. All over this country there are people living below the poverty line and struggling to manage the cost of living. Over one quarter of people aged 65 and over live alone and those living alone face the highest poverty risk of all. My advice to anyone sitting at home trying to keep warm in the upcoming cold snap is light the fire and do not be left waiting for the HSE or some NGO to notify you that you may be suffering from hypothermia. We cannot allow the vulnerability of older people to be framed as a moral failure. The Government needs to focus on spiralling energy costs rather than preachy campaigns telling us not to light fires.”
“I raise an issue that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand when I saw it last week on Facebook. It was a Government-backed campaign on the dangers of burning solid fuel like coal, turf and sticks, the very things that have kept people in rural Ireland alive for centuries. The ad goes on to state, "Lighting an open fire or stove causes harmful emissions that linger in the air, harming your health and the health of your family, neighbours and community." The leaflet goes on to ask: Who is most at risk? Burning solid fuels in an open fire or stove harms everyone's health, but children, older people, pregnant women and those with underlying conditions are most at risk. That is Covid-level fear-mongering. People who light fires are the new granny killers.”
“I would like to know what the Irish Government is doing to ensure the immediate safe return of these children. I urge the Minister for foreign affairs to engage with the Nigerian Government and other EU member states.”
“Mary's School has a long and historic connection with Ireland, there is even more of a responsibility on the Minister for foreign affairs to engage with the Nigerian Government to ensure these children are returned safely. Some 50 children have managed to escape. This have given parents hope that their child could be safely returned too. Some families have seen all of their children taken in this abduction. Kidnapping for ransom has become endemic. The international community must not look away. More than 1,500 Nigerian children have been abducted since 2014. Even if Nigeria is not reaching out to us for help, we still have a responsibility to work with our EU partners and offer any support we can. Time is of the essence here. Let us not forget that we are talking about young children. They will be traumatised.”
“I raise the urgent matter of the mass abduction of children from St. Mary's School in the village of Papiri in northern Nigeria. More than 300 pupils, both primary and secondary school children, were taken by armed groups, who spent hours ransacking the school compound before forcing the children into the bush. Families in Papiri had repeatedly appealed to the Nigerian security forces for protection but no meaningful response was provided. This does not seem to be a conflict between Christians and Muslims. Rather, it seems to reflect the Nigerian Government's persistent failure to protect its children from criminal gangs. Given that St.”
“I move amendment No. 5: After the last paragraph under “calls on the Government to:”, to insert the following paragraph: - “review the governance, operational practices, and accountability structures of the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority, and bring forward proposals to strengthen independent oversight and improve transparency and engagement with the fishing sector.””
“I move amendment No. 4: After the the last paragraph under “That Seanad Éireann:”, to insert the following paragraph: - “the concerns consistently raised by fishers regarding the operational approach, transparency and consistency of enforcement by the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority;””
“We had the chair of the SFPA before the fisheries committee last week and question after question put to him went unanswered. When I pressed him on whom he was accountable to, he said he was accountable to our committee. However, he answered no questions. It would have been laughable if it were not so serious. A regulator with enormous power over people's livelihoods should not be a law unto itself. I call on the Government to commit to a full review of the governance, operational practices and accountability of the SFPA and to bring forward concrete proposals to strengthen independent oversight and to improve transparency engagement with the sector. This amendment is about rebalancing the system, so fishers are treated with fairness, respect and transparency.”
“5, to "review the governance, operational practices, and accountability structures of the [SFPA], and bring forward proposals to strengthen independent oversight and improve transparency and engagement with the fishing sector". If we are serious about securing the future of Irish fishing, we cannot continue pretending that all is well within the governance and accountability structures of the SFPA. I am saddened to say it, but the unwillingness to make the SFPA accountable is because the Minister and the Department do not want any culpability for their actions. With respect to the Minister of State, the previous Minister of agriculture, in particular, responded to criticism of the SFPA by throwing his hands up and saying it was an independent body and nothing to do with him.”
“Recently a ten-year case was thrown out of court due to lack of evidence. The NSAI found that an officer of the SFPA allegedly tampered with evidence, which ultimately led to a wrong finding. After a ten-year legal battle, there was no comeback for that business or that family. We cannot keep ignoring the lived reality of fishermen who feel policed out of existence rather than supported. This amendment insists that their voices, frustrations and concerns be recognised in this House and acted upon. This amendment is crucial in ensuring fishing communities know that we hear their concerns and are willing to stand with them. I will speak to amendment No.”
“It would be a disservice to every inshore and offshore fisherman if we fail to name one of the core issues staring them in the face. Those are the practices of the SFPA. This amendment simply recognises what the fishermen have been saying for years. There are serious concerns about the operational approach, transparency and consistency of enforcement by the authority. While the authority issues polished press releases proudly announcing the continued monitoring of inshore vessels to support conservation methods, inshore fishermen are fighting for a fairer quota just to survive. We support conservation efforts but we cannot see fishing communities themselves driven out of existence. The fishing community has no issue with regulations but the questionable practices of the SFPA are an issue.”
“I endorse the motion and thank the Fine Gael Senators for bringing such an important motion to the floor of the Upper House. I also thank the Minister of State for attending. However, I fear the motion does not go far enough. I support the Sinn Féin motions as well. My amendment speaks to the concerns consistently raised by fishers regarding the operational approach, transparency and consistency of enforcement by the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority. Fishermen across the country feel like they are standing on the deck of a sinking ship waiting for the industry they love to quietly disappear. Communities that thrived on fishing are now barely hanging on. I welcome the points raised in this motion, but it does not go far enough.”
“The Government may deny it, but Ursula von der Leyen has been clear in her objective to see a unified European military. She has previously said that her aim is to become the united states of Europe. Where would our sovereignty be then? Many asylum seekers are arriving into Europe because of global conflicts that are driving displacement. Our priority should be tackling this instability and corrupt governments at source, not funding increased militarisation and warmongering.”
“Poland, Hungary, Czechia and Slovakia are refusing to take in asylum seekers or contribute financially. If various members states receive exemptions, will the burden fall to us and other states to pick up the slack? Where is the Government's backbone on this? I was shocked that the EU migration Commissioner praised Citywest as an example of best practice. That is so disconnected from reality. To describe housing over 1,000 people in a hotel as best practice is troubling. It sets a dangerously low bar for standards and casts doubt on the assurances we are being given about the EU migration pact. The first motion seeking Ireland's opt-in to the internal security fund is an alignment with the White Paper for European defence. There is a worrying shift towards increased militarisation across Europe.”
“I thank the Minister for coming in to debate this. I have serious concerns regarding the motions. The second motion asks the House to endorse a framework that has not yet been defined. We are effectively being asked to give consent for funding mechanisms that will only be agreed later for the 2028 to 2034 budget cycle. The Government is essentially asking us to vote blindly. EU Commissioner Magnus Brunner has stated that all EU states are under pressure from current migration demands, but there are 12 countries considered high risk due to the large number of arrivals and continuing tensions over the accommodation being provided. Ireland is one of those 12 countries. In 2026, asylum seekers in Spain, Italy, Greece and Cyprus will be relocated to other EU states.”
“As a result of that, I tried to help a man interested in taking part in the local area hackney pilot scheme. The scheme is strangled by restrictions. There was huge difficulty in qualifying, the operational zone was tiny and there was limited financial support. In the end, we did not meet the criteria so could not apply. I have looked into that scheme since and found that only two people were successful. If the Government is really interested in supporting rural communities with schemes, it should make them accessible and not overly bureaucratic. The scheme is being reviewed and we are still waiting for the review. I ask the Minister to review the scheme and come in here for statements on it.”
“I will follow on from something Senator Kennelly touched on. I read in my local paper, The Anglo-Celt , a story about a man fined for giving people lifts home in a rural part of County Monaghan. He was brought to court for it. Two undercover guards took a lift with him. Is this really the biggest issue facing us? The real crime is the desolation of our rural areas. Two pubs are closing for good each week in this country. In many parishes, particularly the very rural parish I come from in County Cavan, the social life is the local pub and the social scene is a huge part of the community. Those pubs are closing because of the lack of availability of transport for people, particularly older people who would like to take a drink but cannot drive.”
“Just this morning, Aontú received a response to a parliamentary question that the Minister would not answer a question on how many landowners had signed up to the project, stating it was a matter for EirGrid. This response from a Minister is not acceptable. There should be a debate in this House on the matter.”
“This means the ESB may now have to pay far more in compensation to hundreds of farmers along the route. It could delay the project even further. The case taken by the O'Reilly family in Cavan has effectively opened the door for landowners to receive proper, fair compensation for the real impact these pylons have on their farms and homes. Rural communities are told to put up with whatever is cheapest for the State even when international evidence shows undergrounding is viable, reliable and often more durable in the long run. If the State continues to push ahead with reviewing the possibility of undergrounding, it will show it is not listening to the people in Cavan, Monaghan, Meath, Armagh or Tyrone.”
“I raise the issue of the North-South interconnector being delayed again until 2031. The real problem is this project does not have the support of the locals affected because of the continued refusal by the Government to even review the possibility of undergrounding this project. The Government could have saved an awful lot of hassle, annoyance and money by working with the people and listening to them. We can see from previous storms how vulnerable our infrastructure is. We should be future-proofing infrastructure by putting the interconnector underground. The recent Supreme Court ruling has big implications for the North-South interconnector. The court decided that landowners could be compensated not just for the exact bit of land where the pylons would stand but for any drop in value to all of their land caused by the power lines.”
“Imagine if those targeted measures had gone to SMEs instead of multinationals like McDonald's, which hardly need State support. If the Government keeps increasing wages without providing targeted supports, then we will see increased dereliction and desolation across rural communities. I would like to congratulate the Knockbride team, from a small parish in Cavan, who won the Ulster championship in the intermediate section, and Cavan Gaels, who won the junior competition.”
“I know of businesses which have tried to avail of them, but have not met the eligibility criteria to be successful in drawing down grants. There is an illusion of help for many businesses which apply for grants, but when they reach for help, they find it is not there and they cannot attain it. A Small Firms Association, SFA, survey showed that nearly a third of small businesses reported an increase in labour-related costs in the past year alone. They have been hit with new bank holidays, increases in sick days, a 65 cent rise in the minimum wage and a new auto-enrolment pension scheme. In July, the Minister of State, Deputy Niall Collins, said on RTÉ that the lower rate of VAT was not a done deal and he favoured targeted measures. I agree with him.”
“Small and medium-sized businesses and enterprises are the lifeblood of our of our towns, villages and parishes and the beating heart of community life. I have been contacted, rather sadly, by a few recently. We hear great talk in here about tackling dereliction and preventing the demise of rural communities, but when it comes to supporting the very businesses that keep those communities alive, there are few attainable and tangible supports. These are the family businesses passed down from one generation to the next. They sponsor local GAA teams, school fundraisers, Christmas lights, town and drama festivals and Tidy Towns competitions. They are the employers who keep our local economy afloat, yet the weight of regulation and spiralling costs is pushing some of them out of business. There are grants, but they are not always attainable.”
“I ask the Department and Minister to stop ignoring the sector before it collapses completely. I ask for statements in the House on this matter.”
“The Government and the Minister for children have failed to engage with the childminding sector, yet when people come up with their own creative solutions to the childcare crisis, the Government waltzes in and sets regulations that will force the majority of them out of the sector. I want to see the Government put real, genuine value on caregiving. Whether they are mothers at home, childminders or family members, these are the people holding society together and they are constantly overlooked. We want a tax credit for families whose children are cared for by childminders or relatives to equalise support with what crèches and playschools receive through State subsidies. Home-based childminders should be exempt from commercial rates. Any regulation needs to be drafted with the input and support of childminders.”
“According to a recent survey, 80% of childminders are considering leaving the sector ahead of the draft regulations coming into place. This would cause a total collapse of childcare services. Parents are already at their wits' end trying to find a crèche or playschool place for their children. Childminders provide a fantastic and much-needed service in their communities and yet the Government seems set on over-regulating them out of the sector. If home-based providers disappear, where are those children to go? What alternative is the Government providing? The draft regulation is invasive and includes measures such as publishing the home addresses of childminders and assessing their homes for commercial rates. I do not agree with that at all.”
“I ask that a full breakdown of the applications be published showing people who took an interest in the earlier scheme in May and the difference between that number and how many applications were received in August. More importantly, I ask the Minister to commit to exploring a mechanism to ensure these eligible farmers are not left behind.”
“I appreciate the Minister of State's reply but it simply is not good enough for the farmers who have once again found themselves excluded. It is a double rejection. The Minister of State has confirmed 1,254 applications were received and I acknowledge that is a start but we both know the estimated number of those eligible was about 3,000. That leaves close to 1,700 farmers with no recourse. If the Government is serious about fairness and paying what is genuinely owed, there must be a second chance, whether through a short opening of the application portal or through a supplementary scheme. These farmers must be accommodated, otherwise we are sending a clear message that the forgotten farmers are again being forgotten.”
“They feel that the door was closed before they even got a chance to walk through it. These are the same forgotten farmers who we have talked about for years. I ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to open the scheme or, at the very least, put in place a follow-up measure to ensure that every farmer who meets the criteria gets the payment to which they are entitled.”
“I have made representations to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and the response has been an emphatic "No". There is also the question of how a sum of €5 million could be divided among 3,000 eligible farmers because it only amounts to €1,660, which does not deliver the promised €5,000 each. It is no wonder then the Department seems to have quietly accepted a much smaller pool of applicants. I wrote to the Minister before the scheme opened and again after it closed to highlight these exact concerns; specifically that the timeframe was too short and the communication from the Department was not adequate. The feedback I have received from farmers across the country is one of deep frustration and a sense that the forgotten farmers have again been swindled out of their entitlements.”
“When the scheme closed, only 1,254 applications had been received, which means that fewer than half of those identified as eligible got the opportunity to apply. Such a situation cannot be explained away as a lack of interest. It speaks to poor communication, a rushed timeline and a scheme that was, in my opinion, designed to minimise uptake. The truth is that a two-week window in August was never going to work for farmers. At that time, farmers were under pressure, contractors were busy and advisers were on holiday. Many farmers did not even hear about the scheme until it had closed. For a group that had spent years awaiting recognition this was a cruel, short opportunity and now they are being told that it is too late.”
“I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House. Once again, I want to raise the issue of the forgotten farmers scheme, which closed for applications on 13 August. The scheme was intended to right a long-standing wrong by finally recognising a cohort of farmers who missed out on key supports during a gap between CAP reforms. This scheme was years in the making yet the Department opened applications for only a fortnight in August when many farmers were at their busiest. I have been contacted by constituents who simply did not realise the scheme was open, only to discover that they had missed the deadline. In 2015, the Department of agriculture identified around 4,000 farmers in this group. By 2023, that number had been revised down to 3,500.”