Johnny Mythen (Wexford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Cathaoirleach, the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, the Minister of State, Senator Hackett, and their officials. The theme of the day is the restoration of confidence in the sector. The Minister said in his statement: "It is not always an easy decision to get involved in forestry and I know that ... planting has been in decline in recent years." I want to put it to both the Minister and the Minister of State that the woeful system that was in place for several years was directly responsible for the decline of the sector, especially the non-issuing of licences, the backlogs and the ash dieback. This alone killed off any ambitions many farmers and businesses had for taking part in the forestry or afforestation sector.

In fairness, farmers could not invest in something that was not fit for purpose, or that was dogged by inaction and intransigence. This intransigence effectively almost brought one of the country's most valuable natural resources to a halt. We had timber mills, the self-employed, nurseries, contractors, farmers and foresters all left high and dry in the past. Why was this allowed to happen? What fundamentals have changed to ensure this does not happen again? I want to ask both the Minister and the Minister of State to make it a priority for the next six months and to push all of key personnel in their Department to deliver on the policies and the new forestry programme, and most of all, to deliver on licences in a timely manner.

Ms Jo O'Hara, the former chief executive of Scottish Forestry, has been appointed by the Minister of State, Senator Hackett, to make recommendations on improving the administration of forestry in Ireland. I ask the Minister and Minister of State to consider appointing a full-time project manager to implement her recommendations.