Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)

I thank the Minister for his response. I ask him to give me a clear understanding as to whether farmers who have lands in Lyracrumpane, Glencar, Cahirsiveen, Kilcummin, Gneevgullia, Scartaglin and all those places can cut turf where they have parcels of peat? That is a straight question and I want a straight answer to it.

Farmers are very concerned about the time it will take to get their payments and have this sorted out and gone through properly because they doubt the correctness of some of the maps that some of them have received. They need time for that. If farmers need an extension of time until the end of the month to get their applications in, so be it. I ask the Minister to ensure no one is left out or has an application deemed incomplete because there is so little time. The Minister must recognise that.

This will be another regulation placed on farmers. While this is the thin edge of the wedge, the wedge widens as it goes down and this is what farmers are afraid of. Will it affect their ability to get planning permission for sheds and different things on their lands down the line? We need answers to that. Farmers are worried about things like that.

The Department already has 27,000 acres of national park in Kerry that it cannot properly manage. Rhododendron is out of control and deer are roaming the roads causing havoc. In buying up more land in Kilgarvan, Beaufort and other places over the past 12 months, the Department is competing against active farmers.

This action, or new standard, will take more time than is available. Applications have to be in by tomorrow, 15 May. I ask the Minister to give some leeway so that farmers can put correct applications in. Again, I ask the Minister to make clear whether farmers cut turf, as they have traditionally done, and as we have done in Reacaslagh for the past 200 years.

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