Micheál Martin (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)

First, I have to get a report on that. It is not the standard, and it is unfair to say it is the standard by which we are going to deal with biodiversity and our natural habitats. We have doubled the budget. I was involved in the last five years with the then Minister of State with responsibility for the NPWS, Senator Malcolm Noonan, and the Minister of State, Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan. We have doubled the budget for the NPWS and have given it significant momentum. It has a strong organisational structure within the Department of housing and heritage. We are adding to our national parks. What happened here is wrong, fundamentally. I have read about it, but I need to get a comprehensive report on what transpired. It is unacceptable, in my view. We are consistently looking at ways to enhance our biodiversity, create greater opportunities for rewilding and add to our national park network. We did that successfully in the last Government and we want to do more in this Government.

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