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Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forest Policy and Strategy (Resumed): Discussion (1 Mar 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: Was that land being bid on in July of last year?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forest Policy and Strategy (Resumed): Discussion (1 Mar 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: -----and Coillte was here on 13 December. The announcement of the deal was on 16 December, and this went through Land Registry, which we thought very unusual. Bidding had to be done six months before that, and it was very coincidental, from the committee members' point of view. Would Mr. Carlin agree?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forest Policy and Strategy (Resumed): Discussion (1 Mar 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: I want to try and keep going. Ms Gray said that Coillte was concerned about Ireland meeting its targets. How is it that at the end of 2022 or in 2023 Coillte got this burst of concernment when in 2016 and 2017, Ireland still had the same figures and there did not seem to be a bother about it? Could Ms Gray explain this to me whether Coillte is concerned about Ireland's climate targets? My...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forest Policy and Strategy (Resumed): Discussion (1 Mar 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: ...resolved. It is my understanding based on what I am from Brussels today. Coillte has a plan of what it will do. Will that cause a problem if Coillte takes 30,000 ha of trees out and rewets the land, it will be 30,000 ha down on taking on carbon. Does that cause a problem?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forest Policy and Strategy (Resumed): Discussion (1 Mar 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: What we found unusual, to be honest about it, was that it went through the Land Registry on 23 December 2022-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forest Policy and Strategy (Resumed): Discussion (1 Mar 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: Let us not put it on the farmer. I believe a lot of farmers are willing to plant part of their land, be it 1 acre or two or whatever. If farmers wanted to plant this minute there is not a place to put an application in and there probably will not be until halfway or three quarters of the way into this year. That needs to be clarified.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Policy and Strategy (Resumed): Discussion (22 Feb 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: ...The general rule of thumb is spruce takes 30 years to grow. That is the first question. I will throw a blast of questions together in order to get them done as quick as I can. Under the proposed land use, land use change and forestry, LULUCF, we are talking about 25,000 ha to 30,000 ha of forestry a year. Do the representatives think the people who came up with those ideas need tablets...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Policy and Strategy (Resumed): Discussion (22 Feb 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: Mr. Rushe does a bit of dairy farming. There is pressure on land at the moment around the country. How can this be resolved so that one part of the country is not taking the hit for everything, no matter which type of farming we are talking about? The IFA has looked at the grants that are being proposed at the moment for forestry. Given what we are hearing about the price of land for rent...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Policy and Strategy (Resumed): Discussion (22 Feb 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: We are looking at rooting up some of the trees that Coillte and others have planted on what we would call peaty ground. There is talk about rooting them up and rewetting that land. Where does all of this magical land come out of to suffice the dreams of all the different pressures that is on it?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Policy and Strategy (Resumed): Discussion (22 Feb 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: We have seen the Gresham House set-up and, no more than the IFA, we do not agree with it. We have seen the different interests, including not-for-profit organisations, trying to buy land. I would be out talking to farmers a fair bit. If farmers with less than 50 acres were asked to plant 1 acre and to look after it well, those with 50 to 100 acres were asked to plant 2 acres and so on, we...

Select Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (Revised) (8 Feb 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: ...is very important. My understanding, and the Minister might be able to explain this to me, is that generally these access to finance schemes are for six years. If a farmer wants to buy a bit of land, I believe he or she is not allowed under the scheme. Will anything be done to help them in the sector maybe for a ten-year period or allow it so that farmers could buy a bit of land? Why...

Select Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 30 - Agriculture, Food and the Marine (Revised) (8 Feb 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: I wish to raise one last point. This is a bit away from this but it is ferociously important to it. Is it correct that at Cabinet yesterday, part 1 of the land use, land-use change and forestry, LULUCF, review was brought in to Cabinet? When will we get our eyes on what is in that?

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (1 Feb 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: Under the programme for Government, Ireland is projected to plant 450,000 ha of forestry between now and 2050. That is about 1.1 million acres. In 2023, with all the debacle that has gone on with forestry over recent years, farmers, if they want to apply to plant trees, cannot do so because the Department will tell them that it is waiting for state aid approval. Along with that - this...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Dangerous Dog Breeds and Sheep Worrying: Discussion (1 Feb 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: ...are prepared to pay €800, €1,200 and €1,500 for a dog, they should be prepared to pay for insurance cover. I am not looking for the type of insurance that covers vets like they have in England, or anything like that. I am saying that basic public liability insurance should be mandatory. I ask the witnesses to look at that. People will say that my second...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Policy and Strategy: Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (25 Jan 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: I refer to the Coillte deal. Let us be clear on this. Am I correct in saying that if there were premiums on that land, such as entitlements, an investment company can draw the entitlements? "Yes" or "No".

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Policy and Strategy: Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (25 Jan 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: ...it into the name of the investment fund on 23 December 2022. The witnesses said they were made aware on 16 December or 18 December 2022. Can it be believed that everything moved this fast in Ireland? Any time farmers buy bits of land it takes three to four months to put the land into their names. Do the Minister and the Minister of State believe that all this only went on from the day...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Policy and Strategy: Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (25 Jan 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: I am talking about a deal in County Tipperary involving 1,100 acres of land that has been put into what we will call the new investment company's name. It was registered by 23 December 2022. This was only a few days after the Minister said he became aware of it and 12 days after we had representatives from Coillte here. Would the Minister find it unusual that people worked so fast?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Policy and Strategy: Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (25 Jan 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: ...company came in here on 13 December 2022, the Chair will know the date exactly, and informed us that they were so worried about our climate targets they were going to plant 100,000 ha of clean land. Was the Minister surprised that the first deal to be done will involve 8,000 ha being devoted to standing timber which will not be of any benefit to Ireland's mitigation measures? Was the...

Forestry Sector: Motion [Private Members] (24 Jan 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: ...at all? There is something that stinks about this whole scenario from beginning to end, for the simple reason that we are getting different stories all the time. Mr. Carlin referred to clean land on the basis that he was so concerned about Ireland’s climate targets. Now we see that 8,500 ha are being bought. We know land was bought in Tipperary and the name in which it is...

Forestry Sector: Motion [Private Members] (24 Jan 2023)

Michael Fitzmaurice: ...for a Department that is incompetent to issue planting licences. We need to know the truth regarding what is going on. Is the deal finished? The Minister can say we are getting €25 million here in Ireland but it is a €200 million fund. I have done the figures. With regard to the hectares referred to, those concerned are on about €7,200 or €7,300 per...