Tim Lombard (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Senator Daly picked up most of the points I was going to raise. I would like the witnesses to elaborate on the level of confidence in the industry with regard to planting. We have seen a huge issue with regard to seedlings or plants being destroyed, particularly this year, because of a lack of actual planting in the industry. The knock-on effect of this over the next few years will be horrendous. I ask the witnesses to elaborate on where they think the programme is going, what needs to happen, what steps need to be taken to build confidence in the sector and the hectares that have been planted. My understanding is roughly 2,000 ha have been planted, which is a fraction of where we need to be. What steps need to be taken to make sure we reach the target in respect of which we are already 90% off?