Ministers at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) will fight “very hard” to ensure that farmers get their fair share of a new Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund.
The fund was announced as part of Budget 2024 earlier this week by Minister for Finance Michael McGrath who said that a total of €14 billion will be put aside in the fund by 2030.
This funding will allow for sustained levels of investment in infrastructure in the event of economic downturns and to support climate- and nature-related projects.
There is no sector better than agriculture to take this available resource into the future to deliver even further for nature, biodiversity and climate, Minister of State, Martin Heydon said.
“This new [Infrastructure, Climate and Nature] fund is one that we will be fighting very hard to make sure that agriculture gets a very fair share of the slice.
“Farmers and our food companies and our food production system around the country can definitely deliver in relation to the goals that [this] fund is settled for,” he said.
‘Real potential’ in nature fund
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue has also expressed his intention for the agriculture and food sector to access and receive support under the fund.
The fund holds “real potential” for the agriculture sector, and the DAFM will be exploring every opportunity in relation to how that could support the sector, Minister McConalogue said.
The new Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund, however, will require legislation which will be brought through the Dáil in the next number of months, he added.
The Department of Finance said that the fund will, among other uses, help to support climate-related initiatives over the medium and long term.
However, the department also said that an access route to the fund specifically related to climate change will be developed in order to channel investment towards climate neutrality.
The Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) expressed concern over how the fund would benefit the farming community, and what conditions would be attached to any funding coming from it.