Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the members of the Irish Timber Council for their presentation. Like other members of the committee, I am completely opposed to any sale of the harvesting rights relating to Coillte forests and to the transfer of what is a vital State asset into the hands of any private company, regardless of whether it is a pension fund or an international forest products company. As we face into dealing with the challenges posed by climate change, Coillte and the forestry for which it is responsible have a massive part to play not only in the context of the production of raw timber but also in respect of the provision of alternative, carbon-neutral sources of heating for homes throughout the country. Coillte's role in this regard is vital.

I am in complete agreement with everything contained in our guests' presentation. The only difficulty I have with it is with the inclusion of safeguards. The implication seems to be that if one or two of these safeguards are put in place, then the proposed sale might meet our guests' needs and, instead of being an eventuality about which they were concerned, could be dressed up as something they were actually seeking.

I wish to ask four questions. What is the council's relationship with Coillte, that is, how much is Coillte involved in planning businesses, raw material supply and so on? According to the presentation, more than €200 million has been invested in recent years. How much of that investment was made following consultation with Coillte on the likelihood of available supplies and did Coillte encourage the upgrading of businesses? The council's sole raw material supply is potentially under threat from a Government decision. If Coillte is retained as a semi-State company, what is the potential for growth in the sector? It is no secret that Coillte needs to be modernised and reflective of current demands.

I must ask my final question, as the topic was raised in the presentation, namely, the 29% premium on the price of raw timber in Ireland compared with England. This is probably an argument in favour of Coillte's sale, as any possible investor would retain a premium by supplying logs to the domestic market. How does this fact square with trying to keep Coillte in public ownership?