Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

In short, the Wildlife Acts allow councils to cut hedges, whereas the Roads Acts oblige landowners to do so for road safety reasons. In essence, section 8 is trying to harmonise the Wildlife Acts and the Roads Acts to eliminate the confusion that has been caused during the years on this issue. I have already addressed the issues related to hedgecutting in the month of August. I have explained the reasons and rationale for that decision. I do not propose to go into them again. It is important to say that under section 40 of the Wildlife Act 1976, as amended, hedgecutting cannot be engaged in by individual landowners during the closed season from March to the end of August. Section 8 of the Bill provides that works to be undertaken by landowners along public roads under section 70 of the Roads Act 1993 for safety purposes will be considered to be an exempted activity under section 40 of the 1976 Act, as amended. The Deputy's proposal would align the Wildlife Acts with a specific subsection of section 70 of the 1993 Act. If it were to be accepted, the Wildlife Acts would continue to contradict the remainder of section 70. That is really the reason for this provision. It is also important to note that it is being introduced on the advice of the Attorney General.