Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)

How much more strategic does it get than the ability of the State to produce its own energy? It does not get more fundamental than that. If we do not have energy, we have nothing. To say giving that away does not represent a giveaway of a vital strategic asset is beyond belief.

I would like, however, to focus on forests. Like Deputy Donnelly, I was brought up in Dún Laoghaire and Wicklow is the back garden amenity of the people of the area. We have walked in the forests since I was young. I also spent many summers walking through forests in County Kerry. It is again laughable in the extreme to draw a distinction between selling forests and somehow retaining ownership of the land. If a private company gets hold of the forests, it will control and manage them and any guarantees or safeguards the Minister promises regarding the maintenance of public access will be worthless because once the lease is handed over, the private companies will have control and we will be on a slippery slope.

We were on a slippery slope even under semi-State management. For example, 70% of Coillte's profits, even under State ownership over the past ten years, were generated through the sale of lands. How much more pressure will there be when a private company is managing our forests and approaches the Government to sell off more State land to make profits? Given it is almost certain Ireland will be forced into a second bailout, how much more pressure will there be on the Government to sell the land then as well? That is what happened in Greece. As part of the first bailout, some privatisations were agreed but, as part of the second bailout, the demand for privatisation was ratcheted up and the Greeks were told by EU representatives to sell beaches and islands. That is the slippery slope the Government is going down.

It is worrying that Coillte was set up by the former Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern when he was Minister for Finance. Coillte was managed by the Department of Finance in its early years when it began to sell off forests. Contrary to what Deputy Donnelly said, major questions and investigations are needed into the failure of Coillte to utilise the 1.1 million hectares under its stewardship, given it made almost no money other than through selling off land and forests. A company headed up by none other than Bertie Ahern would be one of the major bidders for Coillte if it went on the market.

It is shameful that the Government would consider selling off 7% of our landmass and I appeal to everybody who loves our forests to fight and to get out on the streets to prevent the Government from selling off our national heritage and assets which could resolve the unemployment crisis.

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