Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 22 February 2023

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine

Forestry Policy and Strategy (Resumed): Discussion

Mr. Mike Glennon:

The felling licence process has been a challenge for people. Some of the conditions being put on felling licences have made people say, “God, you know, I am better off leaving it here.” We keep saying this is fixed. I hope we leave the committee with one message: it is not fixed. It is not a functioning market. We need to get it fixed. We need to hear the issues the various landowners have. We need to take them serious and as credible and not just put our own answer to their problem. That is not happening. That is the biggest issue. Someone can affect a felling licence by a putting stipulation on it. Whatever those stipulations are, that can have a huge impact on the value of the crop to a player.