Cooley farmers expect higher compensation for the animals they lost during the 2001 foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak, the Seanad heard on Tuesday.

Senator Erin McGreehan, from a sheep farm in the Cooley peninsula herself, said the Government now needs to act to ensure all farmers receive payments similar to those made to Cooley farmers who successfully pursued a legal claim to the Supreme Court.

"I find this very difficult to speak about, it was a very upsetting time in all our lives. It was 22 years ago, but it's like it happened yesterday," she said.

"No-one here or in the Department (of Agriculture) could ever imagine the upset and the trauma that culling all of the animals, healthy animals I must add, on the entire community of the Cooley peninsula in north Louth."

Fear

"We feared for our neighbours' stock, we feared for our own stock, we feared the worst and the worst happened," she continued.

"Farmers knew the cull had to happen and there was great co-operation given by farmers on the Cooley peninsula.

"There was a compensation package, but from very early on the farmers were not satisfied with the compensation available."

Senator McGreehan explained how some farmers, following "protests, meetings and rows", decided to take a legal case against the Department of Agriculture.

She described the review of compensation in late 2001 "as an opportunity to get it right, but an opportunity missed", despite top-up payments being issued.

Understanding

Senator McGreehan contended that there was a clear understanding that once the legal action was concluded, that other farmers would be dealt with by the Department.

She explained that after 21 years, the Department has settled with the farmers who pursued legal action.

That leaves what Senator McGreehan called "the most unsatisfactory situation, a two-tier compensation package; one for those who took a legal challenge, the other for farmers who believed the Department would reopen discussions once the legal case was finalised".

"Each farming family made the same sacrifice, suffered the same losses, the same trauma, but some are now being treated differently," she added.

Senator McGreehan concluded by saying it sets a bad tone for future co-operation and goodwill from the farming community.

No further progress was made in relation to these cases until 2022

In response, Minister of State Martin Heydon confirmed that the Department had settled with farmers.

He explained that the case had concluded in the Supreme Court in 2014, with the the issue of compensation referred back to the High Court for further assessment to agree compensation.

"No further progress was made in relation to these cases until 2022, when these farmers withdrew the remaining litigation from the High Court," Minister Heydon stated.

"The Department settled these cases on a 'without admission of liability' basis. This was the basis that the settlement would finally resolve all active outstanding Cooley farmer cases and was not based on the State applying an uplift to all farmers who received compensation for foot and mouth in 2001," he added.

He also confirmed the extent of the Cooley cull, with 48,744 sheep, 166 goats and 1,123 cattle.

That far outstripped the rest of the country, where 3,826 sheep and 207 cattle were culled.

Minister Heydon committed to bringing Senator McGreehan's concerns back to Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue, who is currently in China on a trade mission.