Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy is aware that the system of payments to private landowners - to farmers - is completely different from that relating to companies. It is far more lucrative to a farmer than to a company if the former wants to avail of the schemes, so the Deputy cannot say we are encouraging what we will call private investment companies or anything like that.

Yes, if they make a commercial decision to buy a farm or land, and to grow trees on it, that is a monetary decision they take. However, financially we fall on the side of supporting the farmer more than these people and that is a fact. That is very important. The farmers will get paid for 20 years, whereas the company will get paid for 15 years. I will say another very important and sincere thing to the Deputy. If there is land for sale or if an individual, a company or whoever wants to plant, they must look at it this way. If they go through the approval system and get approval to plant, and if it is appealed and goes to FAC, that is it. They can go ahead and plant it. At the end of the day, I want people to plant trees because I want us to have our own timber in the future. I do not want us to be importing everything we want. I want us to be exporting and keeping jobs at home.