A Senator has said that figures released to her party show that 4,234 people working in forestry, fishing and agriculture have moved to job seekers payments in a decade.
Senator Sarah O’Reilly said that data released to Aontú showed the shift – with party leader Peadar Tóibín adding that it was his view that “family farming is being wound down in Ireland by the government.”
“The stark fact that over 4,000 farmers and fishermen have moved to job seekers allowance over the past decade is a shocking reminder of how these vital and valuable sectors are being pushed out of existence,” Senator O’Reilly said.
Senator O’ Reilly who sits on the Oireachtas Joint Fishing Committee said she believed the figure is an underestimation of the numbers leaving the sector.
“These figures, while both sad and sobering, don’t fully reflect the situation. People are leaving these sectors in droves; they’re heading for Canada and Australia. I have family members who have left, I know so many families in my constituency who have lost family members to the opportunities that countries offer, leading to the abandonment or sale of farms.”
“If these figures don’t act as a clarion call for real action by this Government nothing will,” she said.
“These industries have long been the backbone of Irish rural life. It is no exaggeration to say that the fishing sector is in deep decline,” she added.
A previous analysis by the Irish Farmer’s Journal of Census figures in January 2024 showed that 1,400 farmers are exiting the industry each year, with 13,455 farmers leaving the sector in the space of ten years.
“In recent years, many Irish farmers and fishermen have lost their livelihoods, impacting both income and long-standing traditions. Government policies—such as proposed herd culling, the Mercosur trade deal, carbon taxes, delayed ACRES payments, and the ridiculous concept of ‘bog rewetting’—have increased anxiety and financial strain in rural communities,” Senator O’Reilly said.
“The agriculture sector faces excessive bureaucracy—the rigmarole is strangling the sector, insufficient financial support, and a lack of recognition for the skill and dedication of farmers and fishermen.”
“There is an urgent need for more effective government support and streamlined regulations to sustain both the Irish agriculture and fishing sectors which are an intrinsic part of Irish life for generations”.
The Mercosur deal, which has been in the works for over twenty years before picking up steam in the late 2010s, envisions the dropping of 90% of tariffs between the EU bloc, including Ireland, and Brazil – allowing greater market access between the two continents under a shared regulatory framework.
Pointing to environmental concerns in the Amazon, political turmoil within Latin America, and oversupply fears from European farmers, the deal has repeatedly been rejected by Irish farming groups such as the IFA, which warned about the impact of cut-price Brazilian imports on Irish market dominance.
Arguing that EU and Irish government participation in Mercosur fundamentally discredits the supposedly green credentials of both entities, President of the ICMSA dairy association Denis Drennan outlined that Brussels is open about the damage the deal will do to Irish industry.
“On one hand, the EU wants to load more regulation on its own farmers in the name of sustainability and on the other, it appears happy to conclude a deal that will see lower-standard beef enter the EU market with little regard for the environment,” he said.
Ireland cannot block the Mercosur trade deal under the terms of the Lisbon Treaty unless other countries move to join together to block it, using the Qualified Majority Voting mechanism.