Timmy Dooley defends farmers, criticises opposition motion
Timmy Dooley, speaking in the Dáil, sets out his personal connection to rural Ireland and defends the government’s work with Ministers and the Department of Agriculture during the recent crisis. He criticises Sinn Féin’s early motion of no confidence and condemns attempts to usurp state authority over port clearances.
Background and personal perspective
Timmy Dooley opens from a personal place: born on a small farm in East Clare, living among rural communities and understanding the daily challenges of small farmers who provide for their families. He stresses that empathy and understanding of rural struggles are not the monopoly of any one side in the House.
Government response and coordination
Dooley explains that, together with Minister Hayden, Minister Healy-Rae, and Minister Grealish, he and officials in the Department of Agriculture have worked with stakeholders since the crisis began - a crisis he links to surging oil prices following the invasion of Iran. He says they have remained in contact and were developing a package of supports over Easter and the following weekend.
Opposition moves and port authority concerns
Dooley criticises Sinn Féin for tabling a motion of no confidence before support measures were announced and calls out Independent Ireland for public statements about port activity. He argues that elected representatives do not have the right to usurp the authority of the state in deciding what moves through ports and warns against undermining official processes.
Implications for rural communities
The speech frames the debate as one about protecting farmers and ensuring decisions about supports and supply chains are handled through proper channels. Dooley positions his remarks as both a defence of rural communities and a rebuke to political manoeuvres that, he says, risk confusing and harming those communities.
We publish thousands of recordings to make Irish politics transparent and resistant to manipulation. Spotted an error? Report it — together we are building a reliable archive of Irish politics.
Comhairle, I was born on a small farm in East Clare. I know the struggles of my community. I know what it's like for farmers, particularly those that are small in nature, and have to provide for their families. That hasn't changed since the time I was going to school. I live amongst my people. I believe nobody in this house has a monopoly on empathy, or nobody has a monopoly on the understanding of the struggles faced by the rural communities. However, there has been an attempt by some this week to usurp all the knowledge, maria, of that, and have sought to present those of us on this side of the house as being somewhat deficient in our capacity to understand the challenges that have been faced. Together with Minister Hayden, Minister Healy-Rae, and Minister Grealish, we have worked with our stakeholders under the Department of Agriculture since the crisis began, since the price of oil has gone out of all proportions with the invasion of Iran. We continued to remain in contact with them. So it wasn't really a surprise to me at the weekend, as we worked through Easter, and again this weekend, in trying to develop a package of supports to assist them through the most difficult time, that Sinn Féin, early on Sunday, decided to put down a motion of no confidence in the government, before a package of measures were even announced. I know that's how politics works, and I know that's the role of opposition. However, I was somewhat taken to by the approach of Independent Ireland. Indeed, one of the deputies who happens to be in the House, who went on public television, and was explaining what they were letting through the various different ports. Now, we're elected to do certain things in this House, but I don't think we're elected, or that anybody has the right to usurp the authority of the state in terms of deciding who gets what through the ports. For more UN videos visit www.un.org
Thank you for downloading 🙏
If you publish this material on social media, we would be very grateful if you tagged VideoParliament. It helps us reach more people and keep building a transparent archive of Irish politics.
