Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Last week, I raised the issue of felling licences. There should be no such thing as a felling licence for 50 ha. When someone plants any other crop, be it miscanthus, barley, wheat or potatoes, it can be harvested. This situation is farcical. I will keep raising it. We have an energy crisis. We also have heaps of timber, but we are not allowed to cut it. This would not happen in a kindergarten. The Minister of State introduced legislation almost a year ago, but it was useless, toothless and fruitless. We must allow timber to be cut. The cost of timber for use in construction has doubled. Timber cannot be got in Ireland; we are importing it. This makes no sense. We need a proper debate in the Dáil. We need legislation to be introduced by the major parties to give people the right to harvest the crops they sow.

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