Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 8 March 2023

Committee on Budgetary Oversight

Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed)

Mr. Tim Cullinan:

Absolutely, and we are always trying to ensure diversity in our organisation. I have an excellent colleague beside me from County Galway.

The Deputy started off with a point about pathways and how we achieve them, and he is right. We need better planning from our Government. We have to decide what we will do with land. Will we use it to produce food or fuel or a combination of both? I return to where I started: we have to find the right balance here. The climatic conditions, soil type and so on that we have in this country are driven towards producing top-quality food. We do that in abundance and we are very good at it.

The other point the Deputy made is amazing. We have heard what happened in Bord na Móna with the bogs. The Government decided that we would cease harvesting turf and now it is putting in diesel generators. That is astounding. The Government does not have the right plan. There is a responsibility on it to come up with a proper plan. As I have said from the start, we acknowledge our responsibilities in respect of climate and climate change and we are working on them. The Deputy commented that farmers are price takers. Legislation relating to a food regulator is being taken through the Dáil by the Minister, Deputy McConalogue. It is high time for this. It has been kicked around long enough. We need to see that because we cannot continue to be price takers. We have to know where the margin is going in the entire food system. That will be critical into the future.

As for the Deputy's comment on wind turbines, it depends. It is very important that their location does not impact rural communities or local communities. There will be challenges in that area.

Mr. Kissane is our expert in renewables. He might want to make a quick comment.

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