Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. Walsh for his presentation which was concise and to the point. I have visited several plantations infected by ash dieback and seen the problems it causes. We made most of the same points as Mr. Walsh to the Minister of State, Deputy Doyle, when he was in attendance earlier. I have a few questions for the delegates.

Have Mr. Walsh and his colleagues had the opportunity to put their solutions for ash forest owners to the Minister? Do they have precise figures for the amounts of land affected? What figure do they have in mind for compensation for losses? Mr. Walsh referred to different measures of compensation, including allowing an owner to put the afforestation back into grassland and schemes that would allow them to replant and be eligible again for the 15-year premium. If we were to obtain departmental consent to address the issue, about what amount of land are we talking countrywide? Does Mr. Walsh have a figure in his head for the moneys required to do it?

The merit of the delegates' case is undeniable. It is putting it mildly to say it was an oversight by the Department not to check the biosecurity of the plants coming into the State. It was known for a generation that this disease was an issue on the Continent. It defies comprehension that plants were imported without taking into account the disease threat that was being introduced. I am particularly interested in the delegates' estimate of what it will cost to fix the issue in terms of compensation. The disease will still be present, of course, and its eradication will take a long time.