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

I commend Deputy Robert Dowds on his introduction of this legislation. I understand he consulted at length with Keep Ireland Open, which should also be commended on its ongoing work in campaigning for greater public access to the countryside. I fully support this Bill, which should be supported.

Public access to the countryside, to the land of Ireland and to our mountains, rivers, forests, canals and beaches is a hugely important issue because we have absolutely beautiful countryside, which is one of our most precious and valuable assets. Before we take into account any economic considerations, we should state that all citizens have the right to access that beautiful countryside as a matter of principle, because it is such a wonderful asset. We have to start with that. Ireland's culture, heritage and identity are inextricably linked to the countryside, to our environment and to the mountains, hills, forests and land. In a certain sense, access to the countryside is about access to our identity, culture, history and heritage. There could be little more important than that.

As was said by many speakers, there is also enormous tourism and economic potential in increasing access to our countryside. I would run slightly shy of using words such as "product", which Deputy Ó Cuív referred to. That is an unfortunate lexeme to apply to the countryside. None the less, there are serious economic issues at stake. As was said, we already derive enormous economic benefit from walking, activity tourism and so on and we need to protect and expand that, particularly in these times. Of course, there is enormous employment potential in this area.

I accept the concerns raised by those who have issues with Deputy Robert Dowds's proposed Bill. There must be a balance and respect for landowners and farmers who have legitimate concerns about liability, privacy and the protection and maintenance of land, private property and livestock. These are legitimate concerns. As was said, agriculture is also a vital part of our economy and our culture, so there must be a fair balance between these different imperatives. The ideal situation is agreement and, where possible, a consensus and a balance which does not lead to confrontation between these different concerns and different imperatives. To my mind, Deputy Robert Dowds's legislation allows for that. It states that there must be consideration in the declaring of access to lands to the landowners, who must have input into the process, and consideration of all of the legitimate concerns, financial and otherwise, and issues of indemnity. This could be worked on by way of amendments and debate on Committee Stage. However, it is absolutely right that we legislate for this and shift the balance from where it is now, which all speakers have said is unacceptable, to a situation in which we have enhanced public access. I do not see any problem with letting this Bill proceed.

This issue is related to the rather contentious one of Coillte's harvesting rights. One of the best ways we could conserve, protect and develop access to the countryside is by getting a definitive statement from the Government that it will not sell the harvesting rights to our State forests, because Coillte is the largest landowner in the country. It is obvious that to sell off the harvesting rights to our State forests would have detrimental effects on public access.

In that regard, I find it somewhat curious that the Government has recently given a number of public assurances that there will be no threat to public access in the event of the sale of the harvesting rights, but has not expressed support for legislation that would codify the protection of public access. I worry about the twists and turns and the lack of clarity on that crucial issue, which relates directly to the overall issue of public access to the countryside. In expressing my support for this Bill, I reiterate my belief that public concern and anxiety about the issue of access to our countryside would be greatly assuaged if the Government came out now and made a definitive statement that our public forests are not for sale.

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