Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)

I look forward to the Minister's explanation on that. The other issue relates to off-licences. I am happy enough to see wine sold from a fridge in a corner of the store. How will the Minister be prescriptive about that? Can he keep it to a small scale? The issue relating to turf cutting is not unique to the midlands. We in County Louth have our own meadows, though I will not sing "The turfman from Ardee" for the Minister. Turf cutting continues to this day right up into the Cooley Mountains. I am concerned that small, individual plot-holders who cut turf for domestic use may be caught by the provisions and look forward to clarification on the matter.

We should remember that regulations and by-laws on the use of four-wheel vehicles and quad bikes caught a number of sheep farmers, which was not the intention. Sheep farmers require quad bikes to travel on mountains for legitimate purposes and have no intention of damaging the hillside environment. I understand, therefore, the concerns of other speakers that domestic or small-scale commercial turf cutters will be caught by the regulations. The Minister's body language tells me we should have no major worries in this area. I look forward to his response.

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