Tim Lombard (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I express my frustration at the lack of progress with the Heritage Bill. We debated the Bill for numerous months in the House and it has reached Committee Stage in the Dáil. The legislation has flaws and issues. I am sure the people who promoted the Bill, of which I am one, are annoyed that we have reached the end of this term. One of the key principles behind this legislation was an ability for certain landowners to cut their hedges that are located at dangerous roads and junctions. It is almost August and it will take at least another 12 months before the Bill is enacted or its practicalities are enacted. The debate in the Dáil last week was disappointing because Fianna Fáil did its best to slow the progress of the Bill in order that it would not go further or be sent to this House today for debate. We need action on this Bill and it is badly needed. We have debated it at length and ad nauseam. We need to have this debate, we need to have it sorted and we need the legislation put in place.

I was heckled in this Chamber when I raised the issue of hedge cutting and I was told it was not an issue. I have received a large amount of representations from people complaining that they cannot walk on the roads because of overgrown hedges and grass verges. Inaction shows how out of touch other people are. We need movement on this Bill. We need to ensure people can cut hedges in the month of August. If not, people will be killed, which will be a disgrace.