Commenting on the meeting, Miss McIlveen said:
“Since the flooding occurred I have been lobbying for assistance for this sector. It is vital to the sustainability of this staple agri-food in Northern Ireland that our government steps in to help. I met with officials on site, engaged with the Permanent Secretary as well as tabling written questions with the Minister. I was disappointed that the position of the Department that government intervention is unlikely to confer a net benefit to the NI economy that would justify expenditure. For this reason, DAERA has not implemented a support scheme. I was, however, encouraged that the Minister had offered to meet with the sector and I was happy to facilitate this meeting.
It was important for the Minister to hear at first hand the concerns and challenges facing a sector whose whole seasonal crop had been wiped out. The huge cost in preparing fields, sowing and caring for a crop which is then lost would be devastating for any small business.
I was pleased that the Minister took the time to meet with us. I believe it was a positive meeting which identified a number of keys issues which the Department had not taken into account. While there no commitments made by the Minister, I would hope that a more favourable consideration could be made on this important matter.”