Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I wish the Minister well in her new portfolio. She will be well aware that over the last few weeks the people of the west, the north west and the midlands have suffered fair torture with the storm. In the context of legislation relating to the Department of the environment at the moment, many contractors went to help the likes of the ESB and the councils to get trees off roads and all of that type of work. Those contractors need to do work for farmers and the hedge-cutting season is closing at the end of this month. Can the Minister's Government look at giving a two-week period now for those people who had to go there to help during the storm to allow them to help the farming community? Will the Government bring in legislation to ensure that trees, be they on roadsides or in forestry, will be dealt with to ensure we will not again go through the torture we have seen people go through in the last few weeks?

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