Michael McNamara (Clare, Labour) | Oireachtas source

As I stated earlier, this Bill examines the forestry sector while ignoring the elephant in the room, Coillte. There is a dominant player in the Irish forestry sector and that dominant player is State-owned. If one thinks that forestry is a market, which to an extent it is, everybody who wants to plant a few acres will end up competing with Coillte.

I do not have a problem with how the Minister of State, Deputy Tom Hayes, or the Minister, Deputy Coveney, would deal with this, but we are making law for the future. I would have a worry that a Minister, who is a shareholder of Coillte, can delve into private forestry, require it to come up with a forest management plan, and accept or reject it, and there does not seem to be any basis by which the Minister may accept or reject the forestry management plan set out in law.

The Chairman suggested that it was outrageous that a Minister might refuse a felling licence to manipulate the market in some way. It is outrageous to think that Deputy Tom Hayes might do that or that Deputy Coveney would do that, but we have seen Ministers, from Ireland and from many other countries, act strangely over the past 60 years. I would have worries about the potential for abuse of dominant position that this provides.

I have no problem with forest management plans, but they could be delivered by way of incentives rather than being required, particularly for forests which are already sown. Foresters planted them with the approval of the State and decided they would invest the future of their land in this sector and now the Minister, who is a member of Government and a shareholder in Coillte, can delve into their forestry and tell them what to do. I would be particularly concerned that he could impact upon the commercial viability of private forestry in that manner.

I have no problem with the Minister having the power to have an impact on, make or require forestry plans for State forestry - it would probably be good - but I would have concerns in the case of private forestry.