Michael Collins (Cork South-West, Independent Ireland Party)

On Sunday, in Kinsale, hundreds of people turned up in opposition to the granting of a 62-acre mussel farm licence, equivalent to 36 soccer pitches, off Kinsale Harbour. This was first proposed in 2019, when I raised concerns with the then Taoiseach and the relevant Minister. The new licence granted leaves many unanswered questions on the planning process for this specific licence. First, there was no transparency with regard to the licence awarded. Second, there was no public consultation for local concerns to be raised. Third, there was a lack of information on the risk assessment for Annex IV-protected species. Fourth, there was no social impact assessment. Fifth, no monitoring of the environmental impact assessment is evident. Sixth, there is no information regarding lorries taking away the mussels produced. Seventh, there is no information on the environmental impact assessment of the effect of dredging. Eighth, there is no sign of the terms and conditions of the licence, and so on. Simply put, this planning application, which will destroy marine, leisure and tourism activity in Kinsale, is flawed, and this flawed process is aided and abetted by the Department of agriculture.

Will the Taoiseach urgently look into this matter with the Department of agriculture to stop this damaging plan going ahead in Kinsale until proper planning guidelines are adhered to?

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