Minister defends cheese-for-Christmas scheme

The Minister for Agriculture has today been defending a scheme which will see free cheese handed out to vulnerable people.

This morning Brendan Smith announced that free cheese would be available from Monday week for families facing hardship.

Minister Smith said that the scheme has actually been in place for a long time, including through the Celtic Tiger years.

Charities will distribute the cheese and they will also have the task of deciding who should actually get the free food.

“The scheme is available throughout the European Union,” he said. “It has been available since 1987.”