Patrick Nulty (Dublin West, Labour)
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The Government's plan to sell the rights to fell and sell trees in State-owned forests puts at risk 100 years of public forestry in the country. The industry is worth €2.2 billion per year. It was worth €286 million per year in exports in 2011 and it employs 12,000 people. Despite its being an Irish success story, there appears to be a drive and determination to sell off a vital public resource that is generating income for the State.

Has an economic impact assessment been done of the sell-off of Coillte trees? If not, why not? The international experience is that where privatisation has occurred in countries like New Zealand and states in Australia the impact has been very negative for the public and has resulted in more private ownership, less focus on public interest and a lack of accountability in developing their public forestry.

It is a disaster, not just for this generation of Irish citizens but for future generations, that we would sell off the harvesting rights of our trees. It makes us an outlier in Europe. Not even in the darkest days of Thatcher's Britain was she able to sell off that country's forests yet the Government proposal is to accept the troika agreement and not challenge it. There is no legal obligation on this country to sell off the harvesting rights of our forests. What economic assessment has been done on jobs, the economy and tourism? I urge the Minister to take this opportunity to say he will reconsider and reject this ludicrous proposal.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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The plan to sell off the harvesting rights of 1.2 million acres of State forestry, the people's forests, to pay off the debts of bankers is an act of national sabotage and betrayal. Public ownership of the forests and the trees that stand on them is the birthright of Irish citizens.

I do not know if the word "treason" has its roots in the word "trees" but to sell off the State forestry is an act of treason. What the Minister is planning to do has been done by no other country in Europe. Only one country, Sweden, sold off some of its state forestry but a few years later quickly took it back into 100% public ownership. When it was proposed they would sell off the state forests in Cameron's Britain there was a public outcry and following widespread public consultation the plans were abandoned.

There has been no public consultation here. That is not surprising because if there was a public consultation with the stakeholders and the people who care about our forests they would tell the Minister that privatisation puts at risk thousands of jobs, both direct and indirect, in the forestry sector, that all the valuations done so far for the State forestry lands are gross undervaluations, which suggest we will be selling off the harvesting rights for approximately €500 or less per acre when agricultural land here sells for approximately €2,000 or €3,000 per acre, and that even under Coillte forest assets are being sold to prop up the hole in the pension fund. How much more of our national forests assets will we see stripped if private for profit and commercial interests take over the State forestry?

Consultation would also tell the Minister that because forests take 30 to 40 years to rotate inter-generational stable stewardship is needed of the sort that we cannot have when we are talking about speculators and profiteers running the forests. They will tell him that in New Zealand, where privatisation has taken place, there have been major problems with public access, job losses and outflow of profits from the country.

There is simply no justification to sell our forests, and the Minister should abandon this plan immediately. At the very least he should have a public consultation where the facts of Irish forestry and what the impact of its sale would mean for this country could be discussed.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I thank the Deputies for raising this matter and convey the apologies of the Minister, Deputy Coveney, to the House. He is involved in European Union commitments.

The examination of the sale of Coillte does not have anything to do with a drive for privatisation, the influence of Margaret Thatcher or anything to do with ideology. The assets disposal programme is a requirement of the troika which is funding the State and the Government decided that a concession for the harvesting rights to Coillte's forests would be examined. Further to that Government decision the National Treasury Management Agency, through its NewERA Unit, has been actively engaged with Coillte, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in recent months to examine the financial and other implications of a potential transaction.

Substantial work has been undertaken to date on the identification of the forestry assets involved, the determination of their value and the consideration of a number of issues associated with the proposed sale of the harvesting rights. Some of the issues identified to date include public access to recreational land, the possible impact on the timber industry, environmental and social impacts and consequential implications for the company and levels of employment. These issues, and the measures, if necessary, to address them, require detailed consideration.

The Government is aware of the concerns expressed by a number of bodies and individuals regarding the proposed sale. Such bodies include the Timber Council of Ireland, the Coillte trade unions and environmental, sporting and recreational bodies. These concerns focus on the possible impact on the timber industry, employment levels, access to Coillte recreational forests and long-term consequences for the management of the forests, all of which form part of the ongoing consideration.

The Government is very much aware of the important contribution Coillte makes in regard to the supply of timber to the sawmills, in the provision of forest recreational activities and valuable tourism attractions and in the maintenance of the State's forest estate.

The comprehensive examination process carried out to date has included engagement with potential acquirers of harvesting rights when requested by them in accordance with the published Government protocol. The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and NewERA have also met with interested stakeholders to discuss their position on the sale of the harvesting rights.

As part of that, representatives of the two Departments and NewERA met with the Coillte group of unions last Friday where they outlined the process involved and received the view of those unions and copies of the report commissioned on the unions' behalf by Peter Bacon. It was agreed that the Bacon report titled Assessment of the Consequences of the proposed Sale of Coillte's Timber Harvesting Rights - 10 January 2013 would be analysed and a further meeting would be held. NewERA also met with representatives of the Irish Timber Council on 4 July last year to discuss the implications of any sale of Coillte felling rights on the Irish saw-milling sector.

The input of the various bodies such as the joint press statement of the environmental and sporting bodies, the document by the Irish Timber Council outlining its views on the proposal, the Save our Forestsdocument published by IMPACT'S Coillte branch in November, and the Bacon report commissioned by IMPACT is appreciated as they make a valuable contribution to the consideration process.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I must interrupt the Minister.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I will read the last sentence, which is relevant, before the Deputies respond.

The outcome of the overall analysis will be considered by the Government upon its conclusion. The Deputies will be aware that this entire process is a very complex one and it is not possible at this stage to pre-empt the outcome of the analysis and its possible consequences for the future of Coillte. As the Minister, Deputy Coveney, has stressed in his replies to parliamentary questions, the Government will proceed with caution in regard to this matter and no final decision has been taken as yet.

Patrick Nulty (Dublin West, Labour)
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I thank the Minister for his response. Coillte is a profitable, successful company. If the decision to sell off a company that is an Irish success story which is integral to this island's economic development is not an ideological decision, I do not what is because if we were serious we would develop Coillte as a publicly owned company relying on its successful past and the resources available to us as a country. It is untrue to say that this country is required to sell off the public harvesting rights on our forests.

That is not a truthful statement. It is a public policy choice. Like me, the Minister knows this is the wrong move for this country.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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First, the idea we might be required to dispose of State assets because the troika tells us to do so makes the whole matter obscene and outrageous. That we might sell off our State forestry - our national heritage - to pay off the debts of gamblers is nothing short of obscene. The Government is not specifically required to sell off Coillte. It could find this money elsewhere by taxing the wealthy or those earning over €100,000. There are many other options but selling off the State forestry is an outrage.

Instead, this is an area in which we should be investing, expanding and developing to create employment. The Minister knows, as well as anyone who knows about forestry, jobs can be created just by planting more trees. Doing so would also create a sink for carbon which helps tackle climate change. It would also have a knock-on effect for other industries, services and rural areas. It is absolute madness to divest ourselves of State forestry to speculators such as Helvetica Wealth. They see our public forestry as nothing more than an opportunity to turn a quick buck, not giving a damn about public access, future investment, employment and the State's best interests.

The Minister must abandon these plans and we must have a serious discussion with all stakeholders about how we can develop our forestry to the benefit of all citizens and create much badly needed jobs.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I have some sympathy with the Deputies' proposition that State forests should be retained in public ownership, but not for the overly emotive reasons they advanced. I am interested in exploring the possibilities of synergies between Coillte and Bord na Móna in creating a bioenergy company, for example. It has nothing to do, however, with the fact that Coillte is profitable. Bord Gáis Éireann's energy division is profitable and will be put on the market as a result of the requirements of the programme with the troika which are very explicit that there must be an asset disposal programme. If the Deputies want to exclude the harvesting rights in Coillte, perhaps then they will list for me which companies they would like to see included in the asset disposal programme.

It is a fact that such a programme is required by the only lender that the State has. It is not a question of ideology, privatisation or lust on someone's part in government to want to sell the harvesting rights. It is an attempt to comply with strictures laid down by the troika. We have made some progress in respect of these because 50% of the proceeds of whatever is sold will be made available for re-investment and job creation.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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We could give them Anglo Irish Bank and all its debts.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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The problem is that neither of the Deputies accepts that the country was bankrupted under the previous Government and what-----

Patrick Nulty (Dublin West, Labour)
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That is not correct.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Who said it is not correct?

Patrick Nulty (Dublin West, Labour)
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I said that is not correct. Of course, we accept the country is bankrupt.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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The Deputy accepts then that the country is bankrupt.

Patrick Nulty (Dublin West, Labour)
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Yes, but we should not sell off valuable resources.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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We are agreed at least that the country was bankrupted and the Government is trying to bring it back to economic health. I was talking to my Greek counterpart recently about the scale of the disposal of state assets imposed on Greece. She is of the opinion that they do not have the assets stipulated in their programme unless they sell islands.

There is not any acceptance on the part of both Deputies of the state of the disaster into which we have been plunged. I do not disagree with them on the principle involved. I quoted the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, which they chose to ignore, when I stated this examination is going on, the reports will be adduced and no decision has been taken yet.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Can we have public hearings on the matter?

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I hope the two Deputies will jump up and down with the same vigour if it turns out that they are not to be sold.