Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I would like to raise two issues under the Order of Business today. The first of these relates to Coillte and the forestry sector. I attended a meeting of the Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association in Leitrim a few days ago, at a packed venue in the Bush Hotel. I listened to distraught farmers talking, one after the other, about the devastation of their beloved County Leitrim through forestry. I recognise that there is a need to address our carbon emissions, our carbon targets and the need for the plantation of trees. That is not the issue. The issue concerns the survival and sustainability of communities, particularly rural communities. It is about sustainable plantations and sustainable forests, with broadleaf trees mixed with Sitka spruce and other trees. The issue concerns farmers having to compete with multinationals for small plots of land of five, ten or 15 acres. These farmers aspired to extend their holdings and are now up against competition from vast concerns.

Who owns Coillte? I acknowledge that it is a private company. However, its shares are vested in the Minister for Finance and the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Therefore, the State has a full involvement. As such, it can make interventions to allow communities to survive. We heard a litany of problems: schools closing down, houses being knocked down, land being purchased at exorbitant prices, local people being bid out of their communities, rural communities in devastation, with no sense that they can hold on to their beloved Leitrim and extend their prosperity and business in small agricultural holdings.

I know that the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine is coming to the House today, but this is not an issue for him specifically. The Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Andrew Doyle, has special responsibility here. While he is an exceptionally good Minister, we need a strong debate about this issue. It concerns sustainable forests as well as sustainable communities. It is about protecting and supporting rural communities. It is about the importance of alternatives such as broadleaf trees. It is also about small agri-tourism concerns and allowing the community to prosper. If the Leader could organise a debate on that, it would be very helpful.

I acknowledge the work of the Joint Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government. I am a member of the committee and today, less than an hour ago, we launched a report on building standards, building controls and consumer protection. I acknowledge the enormous work of Deputy Eoin Ó Broin, who is the rapporteur on that committee, as well as the Chair, Deputy Maria Bailey of Fine Gael. It is an excellent report. There are 26 key recommendations in this report, but one thing we are clearly saying to Government is that there must be independent oversight of the construction industry. There has to be some mechanism of redress for the people in houses where there are water leaks, where there is pyrite or where there are serious issues of damp in substandard accommodation that people are living in and paying for . That is the galling part. They are paying to live in these homes to keep a roof over their heads. I recommend that everyone gets a copy of the report today, and I commend the committee and all those involved.