Kerry's exclusion from the special status category sought by the Government came as a bombshell to the IFA in the county yesterday. The IFA chairman, Mr Don McNamara, said he was devastated and would meet IFA members throughout the county to explain the position to them.
"This is going to affect Kerry farmers very badly. It is a huge blow to us all and when we convene as an organisation to make the position clear to our members in the coming weeks, I think we can expect a hard meeting."
Mr McNamara added: "In Kerry, and no doubt in parts of Clare, we don't see much of the Celtic Tiger. This news is devastating, to say the least. There are about 8,500 farmers in Co Kerry; now they're going to lose money because of this decision and they are going to see it as a scandal.
"I accept that as a prospering nation we have to contribute to the greater wealth of the EU, but I think people in Brussels have forgotten that there are still poor regions in this State not touched at all by the prosperity which has been so much spoken of."
Mr McNamara said the Minister for Agriculture, Mr Walsh, had held the fort during the Agenda 2000 negotiations in Brussels as best he could. "In many ways, the special deal sought for Kerry and Clare was just as important as the CAP reform negotiations, but today's news leaves us feeling hopeless and wondering about the future."
Mr Phil Healy, a farmer in Ardfert, Co Kerry, was shattered. He farms 178 acres and runs a herd of suckler cows. He also has barley and sugar beet. "This couldn't be worse news for us all here in Kerry and I suppose the people in Clare feel the same. Our thinking was that if we got Objective 1 status, it would help not only farmers in both counties but the development of infrastructure such as roads, etc.
"People shouldn't forget that the Government's application to Brussels was not only about farming," he said, "it was about the two regions - Clare and Kerry.
"If the application had been successful, much more than farming would have benefited, and this would have had a knock-on effect in terms of tourism and the general economy of the two areas."
Arthur Quinlan writes: The Fine Gael MEP for Munster, Mr John Cushnahan, criticised the Government for what he called its ham fisted handling of the structural funds negotiations. It had "lost us friends in Brussels and it could result in a loss of EU monies". He added: "If the current speculation is correct, then Ireland as a whole will suffer because of the incompetence of the Government."