Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I have concerns. I am hopeful that the Government will accept the amendments in relation to the designation of land. I come from a constituency, and a parish as a matter of fact, where the designation of land is common. People can work with it as long as there is decent compensation to the landowner, because in most cases this designation can result in the land being deemed unused as such. That must be addressed.

The designation of land and areas should not mean that a young family who want to start out and build a home in that area are refused planning permission. Going back a number of years, we set up a committee to deal with the scenic landscape issue. Young people were being told that they could not get planning permission to build on their own family farms because the area was designated as a scenic landscape. They were genuine young people who were trying their best to make a start in life. They could not get off the ground because of these designations. Therefore, we must be very careful that we do not fall into that trap. Unfortunately, the country has slipped, with Fine Gael, in particular, and Fianna Fáil supporting Project Ireland 2040, which has put serious difficulties before the people in relation to planning. It is making it almost impossible. Hopefully, tonight we can change that with our amendment. I plead with the councillors out there and the members of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael to get all of their Deputies to support our motion this evening, which would change that and make it somewhat, if only a little, easier for our young people to get planning permission.

The worry I have is that the green lobby in Brussels and Dublin - God knows, there are a few of them in west Cork - is claiming that over the next decade Ireland could see some of its farmland under stricter protection status than the world-famous wildlife plains of the national parks of Africa. That is why these amendments are so crucial and every Deputy in this House should be supporting them. They improve transparency, consultation, democracy and the input of farmers. That is the most important thing. The farmers' input into all of this is hugely important. They have to buy into it, and if they do not, it will be because they are dictated to. Most farmers are worried. They may not need to be worried, but they are worried because they were never consulted in the first place. The farmers were not consulted on the designations of land that I know of in beautiful places like Crookhaven in west Cork.

People were never consulted about those designations and that led to a lot of worry initially. If what was being done had been explained to people from the start, it might not have led to the worries it did.

We are going through a very difficult period in this country. The last thing we need is to see more designations being put on farmers' backs, making it more difficult for them to do their everyday work. The fishing industry is in difficulty with penalty points, Brexit and the issue with the weighing of fish. The sector is in crisis all over west Cork. I ask the Minister of State to be very careful of where he is travelling with these provisions and to make sure there is open consultation. I do not want to take up any more time because my colleagues are waiting to speak. Consultation is the way forward on these matters. Our amendments are not seeking to remove the relevant provisions. They are asking for consultation with landowners. That is the least respect they deserve.

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