Leo Varadkar’s comments on the Path to Power podcast last week about city people propping up rural Ireland were unfortunate.

As a politician and former Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar knows how things work and how to get noticed, and he’s done just that.

If I was a betting man, I’d nearly go as far as to say he’ll have his own podcast coming before too long. The “Listen to Leo” podcast has a nice ring to it. I’m not so sure it will be one for the milking parlour radio.

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The former Taoiseach’s comments went down like a lead balloon in rural circles, and there has been a big backlash within Government, in particular among rural TDs on the Fine Gael side of the house.

It’s not the first time he has drawn attention to himself in rural circles, having made comments in the Dáil in 2019 about eating less meat for climate change reasons, drawing criticism from rural back bench TDs and the farming community.

This time he didn’t just take a shot at farmers, he took a firm aim at rural Ireland and let the mask slip on what he really thought of food production in Ireland.

There has been an enormous amount of good work done down through the years to try to bridge the divide that existed between town and country. His provocative comments were ill-informed and inaccurate, but also disappointing coming from a former leader of the country.

This time he didn’t just take a shot at farmers, he took a firm aim at rural Ireland and let the mask slip on what he really thought of food production in Ireland

A former politician’s view is one thing, and to be honest probably doesn’t count for a lot, but the bigger question is whether Leo Varadkar’s comments and views are isolated or is this what south Dublin city dwellers like himself actually think of rural Ireland and farming in general.

If it is, Irish agriculture has a far bigger problem on its hands than we first thought.

In the Minister for Agriculture’s interview with Pat O’Toole which, interestingly, was completed before last week’s ‘Varadkargate’ situation, Martin Heydon highlighted the need for a better understanding of what farmers do, saying; “it is important for everyone to bear in mind, the time will come where there’ll be a national discussion around how this is all divided”.

Agriculture’s standing in the country with the general public will matter. We need to protect that. We don’t need people thinking farming doesn’t need that level of support.

I’m always acutely aware that we all, across the sector, have to continue to explain to the general public the work that our farmers do and the importance of agriculture to our economy. If any of us ever think what the general public think of us doesn’t matter, it will really matter when I’m having those debates.”

The last few weeks have shown the great division we already have in society, and the fact that some individuals will always seize the opportunity to divide and conquer, a strategy that will serve no one. We didn’t need a former Taoiseach to create further division and pour more petrol on that fire.