The concern about the environment and the food industry and the farming industry is shared by those of us who live in cities. Can the Minister indicate the amount of money available under this scheme for the prevention of pollution and the provision of these holding tanks? How much of this money will be EC money and how much will be Irish taxpayers' money? Can the Minister also indicate if there is a time limit on the scheme itself? Will the scheme cease after a period? Finally, is there any obligation on farmers to take up the scheme?

There is an obligation on farmers to ensure that they comply with the law and we are strengthening the legal position there which was part of the common position of a Cabinet subcommittee on which I serve with my other colleagues. As far as the amount of money is concerned it might help the House to indicate that the original total for the western package up to the end of 1991 for a ten year period from the EC was £149 million. In fact, £60 million of that was drawn down after over six years. It is because I felt that the draw down was too slow that we renegotiated the package and included this element which was not there before. Now there will be £87 million to be drawn down between now and 1991. Of that, at the moment not less than £12 million to £15 million will be available just for this aspect of it. More will be available for infrastructures and land improvement, forestry, training and living conditions. I want to assure the House that following negotiations I have obtained agreement from the Commission to set up a monitoring committee so as to ensure that we draw down all of that money, and we have only two and a half years in which to do so, and if the pace is slower in one area than in another we can switch from one part of the envelope to another. That is a very important element of the new package.