We need a minister for the self-employed

During the Pat Kenny radio show on Jul 6, Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney made an impressive case for farmers to be compensated for the impact that the wet summer is having on their livelihoods’ by bringing forward their EU payments.

When a text from a taxi driver was read out asking ‘who will compensate taxi drivers for not being able to work because of ‘flooded roads’ it was viewed as anti-farmer.

It wasn’t — it was a statement of fact, a fact that pertains to thousands of self-employed people whose livelihoods depend on fine summer weather also. Small businessrs belonging to sole operators with one or two employees, full or part time, were already suffering in the recession, the wet summer has really put the boot in. Tradesmen, small building contractors, landscapers, gardeners, silage contractors, small shops at seaside locations — the list is endless!