Teagasc office closures 'are an attack on rural Ireland'
AT a time when farmers need more, rather than less, support, Teagasc has closed nearly half of their district offices and, in many cases, given very little or no warning to their clients.
The actions of Teagasc were condemned at a meeting of Cork County Council this Monday by Councillor Declan Hurley, who called on the council to formally protest the closures, to both the Teagasc Board and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
He described the closures as "an attack on the farming industry and rural parts of Ireland... when farm families have suffered a dramatic reduction in their incomes."
In the past 12 months, the office infrastructure has reduced from 90 to 51 offices, Councillor Hurley said; the Dunmanway office closed on June 30, with just a week's notice; and Bantry and Bandon are due to close later this year.
At the very least, Councillor Hurley said, the offices must be replaced with an outreach service, if only on one day each week, to allow clients to access the advice, support and services provided by Teagasc.
Cllr Timmy Collins seconded the motion, saying: "There was a saying once that farmers were the backbone of Ireland – well, not any more. Farmers are under severe pressure at the moment; the government has withdrawn REPS, and farmers are getting less for their milk than it is costing to produce it."
The motion highlights an important issue, Cllr Tom Barry said, re-iterating his previously stated view that, although farming is going through a difficult period at the moment, "agriculture is going to have a more central role in our economy in the future".
The "Green government" he said, is blowing hot air in relation to agriculture. The abolition of the REPS scheme made no sense, he said, from an environmental or an economic point of view. It was co-funded by the EU and provided work for organisations like Teagasc.
And while major policy errors like this are being made, he said, the Green Party are looking for their next cause after the controversial Puppies Bill; "they are looking for a kind of cat that doesn't chase mice".
- TRISH O'DEA
