Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Very well. The planting target for Ireland for the four-year period from 2017 to 2020 was 31,140 ha. To date the Department has licensed the planting of 15,109 ha. That is less than 50% of the target. There is a shortfall of 15,000 ha. We have climate targets. Farmers are being kicked around because of cows. This system has failed over several years. I wish the Minister of State the best of luck, but with due respect to her, I do not buy what has been said about the habitats directive. That directive was in force in 2011. The Department has had the period since then to dot the "i"s and cross the "t"s. There is no point in putting something in place in 2018 or 2019, when the horse has bolted. This problem was already here. I am not blaming the Minister of State but the Department she supervises has not addressed the issue. We have to plant 8,000 ha in 2021. How can we even hope to achieve that? I have tallied the figures. We would have to issue about 8,500 licences a year. We cannot cater for our needs. How does the Department intend to address this?