LAST UPDATE | 3 hrs ago

FARMING REPRESENTATIVE GROUPS haven’t ruled out allowing protesters to join their meetings with the government today, but they’ll need to get themselves organised.

Talks at Leinster House yesterday were unsuccessful, leading to a fifth day of slow-moving convoys on key roads and blockades at ports and fuel depots.

Tánaiste Simon Harris said a “substantial and significant” package was forthcoming, but it will only be revealed once the protests cease.

Anger is building over the government’s unwillingness to directly invite protesters to talks, with one of the leaders, Christopher Duffy, saying they’d been “put at the kiddies table”.

Ministers were adamant that they would only invite established representative groups, such as the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) and the Irish Creamery Milk Supplier Association (ICMSA). However, they said those groups may bring protesters along if they wish.

Many of the protesters are farmers and members of the IFA and the ICMSA, but the associations had no hand in organising the demonstrations.

IFA President Francie Gorman told RTÉ’s Countrywide that they would consider inviting a representative of the protesters to join the meeting, even before blockades are lifted.

“We’re not going to find a solution to this problem if we don’t try and include the people who are protesting,” he said.

Gorman said he doesn’t approve of the tactics employed by protesters, but we won’t encourage them to change them when a package hasn’t yet been revealed by the government.

Any package, he says, must address not only the cost of fuel, but also  the cost of fertiliser.

Related Reads

M50 partially closed and public transport remains disrupted as blockades enter fifth day

Dublin Airport advises travellers to use back roads as M50 blocked

'Another few days will have things crippled': Inside the fuel price protest WhatsApp groups

ICMSA President Denis Drennan says he supports “getting everyone around the table”, but it’s proven difficult because the protests were organised at grassroots level, rather than through one centralised group.

“There’s an awful lot of splinter groups and there’s no coordination, so it’s going to be very difficult to get everybody around the table,” he said.

“In some areas, there’s a go slow protest. In other areas, there’s a complete blockage of roadways.

“At one point yesterday, I was held up by three probably 17 or 18 year olds, just parked in three tractors across the road there. There didn’t seem to be any coordination or any instruction being given.”

Drennan said the protesters will “have to get themselves organised” if they want to have a voice in today’s talks.