The climate bill must not undermine the continued viability of sustainable Irish farming, Fine Gael TD, John Paul Phelan has said.

The Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Bill 2021 is currently going through the houses of the Oireachtas.

At a Fine Gael parliamentary party meeting earlier this week, a motion about protecting the future for Irish farming families was agreed unanimously following a long discussion with members from both urban and rural constituencies backing the proposal.

“Irish farmers are very climate aware, they want to pass on a sustainable and viable farm to the next generation and they have a proven record on taking measures to ensure increased sustainability in their production,” Deputy Phelan said.

“It is absolutely crucial that commercial farm families are supported by the climate bill to ensure the very group that can most affect change and strengthen sustainability are not alienated by this legislation.

He added that it is accepted that farming contributes to our emissions, and farmers accept the need to constantly change practices to more sustainable methods.

“Carbon budgets will play a real role in helping Ireland achieve our emissions targets but these budgets must take into account the measures that farmers are already taking.

“CAP reform must prioritise viability also, to allow Irish farming continue to be the best it can be. We don’t want to see a situation where viable Irish farms become non-viable because of measures adopted in either the current round of CAP negotiations or the climate bill.

“The most certain way to achieve balanced rural development is to ensure the viability of Irish family farming. We must keep people farming, ensure that farms remain profitable and that farm succession is more viable to protect the family farm model for future generations, and guarantee the protection of our rural environment,” Deputy Phelan said.