Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the legislation and commend the Minister for making it happen. I know this was a commitment that was made, not least in the programme for Government. It is good to see the legislation before the House this afternoon. The Minister mentioned the pre-legislative scrutiny undertaken by the committee on agriculture and the report that was published subsequently. I am very glad that the committee's six recommendations were considered and some have made their way into the Bill as outlined today. That is very welcome. This is not the first time the Minister has taken the recommendations of the committee when it comes to legislation, which is welcome. Where the committee works really well is when it brings in witnesses, typically farmers and farm organisations. What they tell us ends up feeding into the legislation and that is important. This has been sought for quite some time and it is welcome that we are at this point.

I want to raise a couple of the issues that were brought forward by the witnesses, particularly the farm organisations, when they came before the committee. It is importantly not only to look at the recommendations and the report itself but also to see what the farm organisations said once they had gone through what was proposed at that time. There was a question over the fact that the Minister would appoint the chair and ordinary members. A number of the farm organisations put forward the suggestion that an independent board be established with independent members who would then seek to appoint that independent chairperson, or perhaps put somebody forward to the Minister whom the Minister would officially appoint. Could consideration be given to ensuring that what is intended to be independent is actually independent? We do not want to have question marks once this is up and running. It is better to get it done now and get it done right in the legislation before the panel is established at all. That is a point that all the farm organisations made and it is important to raise it here today.

Another issue was how the review panel will work in its practical operation as regards expected turnaround for appeal decisions, how they will be notified and all of that, particularly the pre-notification of appeals, and whether it will be physical or oral. That is really important. We need to get down to further detail about how this will look in practical terms. Of course, the Minister can only put so much in the Bill. However, it is good to lay everything out and discuss it now as the Bill proceeds, so people know exactly what this is going to look like and how it is going to work, including resources and everything else. People want to know when this will be established and the timeline for it, and when the Minister expects it will be in place once the legislation is passed. I would not foresee any delay to that. Everyone in the House seems fairly positive and understands the importance of this legislation.

Another issue that was raised was the possibility for an appeal case to go to the Circuit Court rather than the High Court. It was said that there are significant costs towards going to the High Court. Most people will know that going to the High Court is not cheap. Could that be considered? It may already have been considered and there may be reasons but it is important to mention it here today.

Overall, this is positive legislation. Aside from the independence of the chair and members and how they will be appointed, the final question is the really important element of the Bill, in respect of including participants with practical knowledge and experience of farming. It was sought and really is the whole essence of what people want the review panel to look like. There is a question about how that will be determined by the Minister, if he will make the appointments without any other process in place, as has been suggested.

How will he decide what that process will look like? When he talks about a requirement to have practical experience of farming, what does that mean? Any further detail in this regard would be really helpful. I know he cannot say who will be appointed but it is important to have greater clarity in this regard. A question mark remains over this aspect of the Bill.

Overall, this is welcome legislation. The farm organisations welcome it. The provisions will be positive for farmers as we move forward. For many farmers, when a decision is made and they feel it is the wrong one, it takes a lot of time to address that, including dealing with correspondence and paperwork. It can be a difficult position for farmers to be in. Sometimes, they are called to oral hearings. Some people may not feel comfortable speaking in such a setting. There are lots of variances within the process. Every farmer is different. I hope the review panel will make a difference and will mean farmers are more comfortable with the process and have more confidence in it. That is important.

In case people think I am doing a runner, I advise colleagues that the Minister of State, Deputy O'Donnell, is visiting Roscommon County Council this afternoon to provide a long-awaited update on the ongoing flooding at Lough Funshinagh. I am saying this on the record in order that colleagues are not left wondering where I am.

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