“I am pleased to be in Luxembourg today for the Agrifish Council. In just over two months' time, Ireland will take on the Presidency of the Council of the EU. I look forward to meeting with Commissioner Hansen and my EU counterparts today to discuss a range of important issues.

“The crisis in the Middle East has once again shone a spotlight on Europe’s vulnerability to changes in the availability and price of fuel and fertiliser.

“Ireland recognises the exceptional pressure that rising fuel costs are placing on our farmers, farm contractors and fishers, and I will be announcing details of national support schemes later this week.

“The crisis in the Middle East also continues to put pressure on fertiliser prices and may affect availability as the year progresses. I look forward to hearing more from the Commission on the proposed Fertiliser Action Plan and on how it will help to deal with our concerns on fertiliser prices and supply from both short- and longer-term perspectives.

“We also need to consider the impact of the current crisis on global food security. We are again seeing conflict disrupting production, supply chains and markets, impacting most on vulnerable groups. Food security is a pillar of global security and should be a priority for us all.”

“Ireland recognises the importance of ensuring that support is targeted in a fair and effective manner across the Union and within Member States”.

“In Ireland’s view, maintaining an appropriate degree of flexibility for Member States in the payment of income supports, for example on the pension-related proposals, will be important to secure both fairness in the distribution of support and the continued resilience of the agricultural sector across the Union.”