Tom Hayes (Tipperary South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will be brief. I do not want to open up another debate on this issue. Everything is already in place. The National Parks and Wildlife Service and all the different agencies are asked for their opinions. Those opinions are always discussed. One is always concerned about disease. One must always take every step to prevent disease. Ash dieback, for example, is a new disease that we have relatively little information on. The Department, with the support of the other agencies, is continuing to try to find disease-resistant trees. One has to look for other ways to deal with these matters. One has to take the best advice available at the time to deal with these issues.

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