Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

-----and everything else in business. The people will have the final say in that regard, and congratulations to anyone who comes back. The damage the Green Party did between 2007 to 2011 is still being rigged in rural Ireland. Is uafásach an rud é an damáiste a rinne An Páirtí Glas sa thréimhse sin. It did serious damage and did not allow the planning guidelines to be published.

What else will Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael say when they go to the doors of the people of rural Ireland, who cannot build a henhouse, a house for their children or a farm development? Fianna Fáil will blame the Greens and Fine Gael will blame Fianna Fáil for the damage they have done, but the people are sick and tired of this. For 60 years, An Taisce has been in place without any amendment, rain check or anything else. What happens operations like that, which of course are set up for good reasons, is that they get hijacked by cranks, as my colleague said, and by serial objectors with serious issues.

We had a meeting with An Taisce officials about the proposed Glanbia plant in County Kilkenny. It was passed by the EPA and there were impeccable records. It was also passed by An Bord Pleanála. An Taisce told us, and in fact told the public, that it had no issues with the planning of the plant itself but had an issue with the cow herd numbers in the country. Just imagine the warped thinking such that it would object to a plant that would offer 250 top-quality jobs. While the objections were being lodged, and over the period of several court cases, milk was being transported up to Strathroy in Derry and back into Cork and other areas. There was no talk of the footprint of the trucks. The nonsense and abuse of power by An Taisce in that case alone were reprehensible, despicable and disgraceful. Even the then Taoiseach, who was sitting in the chair where the Minister of State, Deputy Noonan, is now sitting, called on An Taisce to stop its behaviour because he had no issue with the plant. Despite this, it was possible to hold it up. Is that a proper use of power? Of course, An Taisce has good uses but it needs be straight and tell us who is on it. It is a secret society. It is like the Ku Klux Klan, like the Freemasons. We do not know who they are.

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