There’s a very clear succession plan in the Heydon homestead, as the Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon outlined at a European Commission event focused on women in agriculture this week (see full report, page 24).

The minister is happy to wait and see which one of his four children – three boys and a girl – will show the most grá for farming and become the next generation to take on the Kildare beef and tillage farm.

However, the minister revealed that his wife Brianne has no ambiguity when it comes to their future careers: “If their mammy has any say in it, none of them will be politicians!”