John Brassil (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

With the greatest respect to Mr. Hayes, the National Parks and Wildlife Service is an arm of this State. The people in the room and those listening to these proceedings do not differentiate between the National Parks and Wildlife Service and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. When a commitment is given by an arm of this State they take it in good faith. It is not good enough for an arm of the State to say that someone else gave a commitment rather than itself and as such that it will not bother honouring that commitment. If an arm of the State gives a commitment and another State body takes up responsibility for that area, the second body has equal responsibility in my opinion and, I am sure, in the opinion of everybody else here. I am sorry but I do not buy Mr. Hayes saying his Department did not give the commitment so it will not honour it. We have a collective responsibility to deliver on commitments given in good faith to which people signed up in good faith in the belief they would be compensated. It is only fair of us to honour that commitment regardless of who gave it. If an arm of the State makes a commitment we, as elected representatives, have a responsibility to deliver it.