Commissioner

IFA president Joe Healy met with EU Commissioner for Agriculture Phil Hogan and MEPs last week in Brussels to discuss the measures needed to alleviate the income crisis on farms. He called on the commissioner to act without delay to ease the cashflow stresses on dairy farms and made a strong case for an advance of 70% on the Basic Payment in October.

Ulster Bank

IFA farm business committee chair Martin Stapleton has expressed concern over Ulster Bank’s plans to sell €100m of agri-loans as part of a distressed loan book disposal. He said he expects Ulster Bank to be flexible with the 31 May time frame and to work constructively with customers seeking a workable solution.

Littering

The IFA has contacted Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government Simon Coveney urging him to address the scourge of littering in the countryside and impose increased fines, with greater enforcement by local authorities to address littering. The IFA has identified five action points to stop the problem of littering in the countryside – read more at www.ifa.ie.

Glyphosate

Failure by the EU to renew the approval of glyphosate in the absence of alternative active ingredients to control economically important weeds will destroy Ireland’s important tillage sector, IFA president Joe Healy has warned. He said the issue is being used as a political football and decisions must be based on science and not on political ideologies.

Road safety

The IFA and the RSA are encouraging road users to take extra care as the number of tractors, trailers and other farm machinery using the roads increases.

Be aware of traffic building up, use common sense and share the road responsibly to make sure it is safe for everybody – more advice at www.ifa.ie.