Farmers have been left in limbo when it comes to the future of the EU Nitrates Directive, according to Social Democrats environment spokesperson Jennifer Whitmore.
Deputy Whitmore said:
“During the Agriculture budget conference, Minister Heydon said that the extension of the nitrates directive is his main priority, reiterating his commitment to retaining the derogation as he has many times during meetings of the Oireachtas Agriculture Committee.
“The problem with such a brazen approach is that it disregards the possibility that the request for the directive to be extended will be rejected by the European Commission, which is entirely possible – the Minister’s singlemindedness has left him, his Department, and farmers across the country without a contingency.
“What’s plan B if the directive’s extension is rejected? It seems as if there is none – this government is overconfident in its ability to get what it wants, its blinkers well and truly on.
“Even if an extension of the directive was to be secured this year, the derogation is likely to eventually end, yet I’ve seen no evidence that work is being done to prepare for its phasing-out.
“It’s farmers who will face the brunt of this negligence when the time does come – we rely so heavily on this derogation, yet no supports or planning has been mooted to help the group most affected to transition away from it.
“The derogation itself is destroying our water quality and harming our diversity – the government should never have sought its extension in the first place, but the pressing issue now is ensuring there is an alternative plan to support farmers if its application fails.
“The Minister must present a plan B for farmers at the nearest possible opportunity – there’s no time to stall on this matter.”
October 9th, 2025