The Government was warned yesterday that failure to address the farm income crisis could mean a negative reaction from farmers to the Nice Treaty poll.
Irish Farmers' Association president Mr John Dillon issued the warning during a lobby by IFA representatives of rural TDs at Leinster House. He said 15,000 farm families were at risk of being forced out of farming this autumn due to the "disastrous downturn" in incomes.
The purpose of the lobbying was to "hammer home the message to Government that a package of measures to rescue farm incomes and address the crisis in farming is now vital".
He said farm incomes were projected to fall by 15 per cent this year from already low levels. When inflation was included, that meant a 20 per cent cut in spending power and living standards.The average family farm income this year was projected to be about €13,000 or €250 a week, while average industrial earnings were about twice that.
"Farmers cannot survive on unsustainable incomes and Minister Walsh cannot pretend that most farmers have off-farm jobs when 55 per cent of farming couples do not," he said.
While the IFA was advocating a Yes vote in the Nice referendum, the reality was that farmers would use the poll as an opportunity to pass judgment on Government policy, he warned. "A less than adequate response will clearly have implications for how farmers vote."
Mr Dillon said the crisis was real and would not go away until the Government addressed the issue of farm product prices "head on" with stronger EU supports for dairy and beef exports and political action to get trade moving again to key markets.
