Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I have had numerous meetings with farmers who were unfortunate enough to be affected by ash dieback. As I have said, the financial loss has been very great. When there was brucellosis, TB, dioxin in pigs and severe financial losses being incurred in horticulture, compensation was always put in place. Here we have a disease that, in cases, has resulted in 20 or 25 years of given lands' productivity being lost. I have never seen loss on such a scale being incurred by farmers.

We have had various schemes to encourage farmers to clear the sites but it can be seen from the figures that farmers are not buying into them. Confidence among those in this country's forestry sector has never been at a lower ebb. We have to do the right thing for those affected by ash dieback to start rebuilding that confidence. It would be a major step in rebuilding confidence in the sector and a major boost to the private forestry sector and the individual landowners. As I said in my initial statement, my ask is very simple and clear. If these forestry owners replant this land, they should be entitled to access to the premium for the next 20 years. That will not restore their financial losses. They have lost a very lucrative crop but, unfortunately, that is water under the bridge. We cannot restore that crop; it is gone. However, if they got what would, in effect, be a pension payment for them, the vast majority of those who have lost out would be reasonably content - I will not say satisfied - that the plight they have suffered, over which they had no control, was being recognised. When this review is being studied and in the days leading up to the budget, I urge the Minister of State to put the finance in place to give fair play to these people affected by ash dieback.

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