Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

We spent a lot of time discussing how the Department would get to the point of issuing 100 licences per week. Around September, the Department started to hit that target on a regular basis. That was never supposed to be the upper limit but it appears it is, as a target has been set for 5,200-odd licences to be issued this year. The lack of ambition and imagination within the Department is frustrating. We need to do much better than we are currently doing. The Minister of State said she is contacting people who have afforestation licences and are not using them. When will those letters be issued? I have raised this on numerous occasions. It is lunacy that those people have not been engaged with. I was under the impression that, based on what both the Minister of State and the Minister have said, that work commenced some time ago. Is the Minister of State saying that has happened or that it is happening? That is an important point of clarification.

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