Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I fully concur with Deputy O'Donovan. I met with farmers in the area. There is another problem. I refer to people who entered into the contract, albeit a little late because of the procedure and so forth, and they have not received one cent. There are hundreds of such farmers. Their land is effectively sterilised and they are getting no income from it. In the boundary area of parts of north-west Cork and into west Limerick, there is forestry on one side of the road and half a mile down the road there is forestry while in between the land is sterilised. It makes no sense whatsoever. There needs to be a complete reappraisal of this situation. I concur with the need for a working group to try to resolve the situation. In the meantime, people have had no income for many years and effectively their land has been sterilised. I ask the Minister of State to give it his immediate attention.

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