John Cummins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House again. It is fantastic to have a Minister of State who is also a Seanad colleague in the House presenting the Bill. While some on the opposite side of the House have been criticising the Minister of State for the haste with which she has brought forward the Bill, I commend her and her officials on the speed and haste in bringing forward the Bill.

The Bill is about protecting jobs and securing an industry that gives a contribution of €2.3 billion to the Irish Exchequer with the creation of 12,000 jobs across the State. In my county of Waterford, 470 jobs are reliant on forestry, and in the south east the total is approximately 2,000 jobs.

It is a significant concern for me that we have such a backlog in appeals before the forestry appeals committee. A briefing on the Bill was held last week on Zoom for Oireachtas Members. I compliment the Minister of State on hosting that briefing. It was useful and I am keen to see such briefings continue with other legislation. At the briefing it was stated that approximately 10% of licences were appealed in the past whereas now essentially 100% are being appealed. The figures given by the Minister of State in her speech included the fact that appeals of licences have gone from 14 in 2017 to 402 to date in 2020. That is a 2,771% increase in appeals. This has clearly had the effect of causing a significant backlog in the appeals process. It is up to us as legislators to address that and this is what the Bill is seeking to achieve.

I welcome the provision that the forestry appeals committee can determine an appeal without the need for an oral hearing unless it considers it necessary to conduct one to determine an appeal fairly. I also welcome the provision to allow for the dismissal of a vexatious appeal. The most considerable changes are obviously with regard to reducing the quorum to two members and the ability of the Minister to be able to appoint deputy chairpersons to the forestry appeals committee. I echo the comments of my colleagues in respect of the fee structure. The provision addressing this is also welcome because it aligns the process with other planning processes. That provision should not be amended. I welcome it wholeheartedly.

There is urgency to this matter. I know the Minister of State is treating it seriously and the seriousness cannot be overstated. I have had discussions where concerns have been expressed to me by Smartply in Waterford. Smartply is a significant company with more than 150 employees in the Port of Waterford at Belview. The company creates high-quality product for the national and international market. However, the company is fast running out of raw materials. My colleague, Senator Lombard, mentioned the importation of material from Scotland. This is simply an untenable position for a country like Ireland. The fact that our mills throughout the country are running out of raw materials means this has to be addressed with urgency.I compliment the Minister of State and her officials for bringing this Bill to the House with haste. Forestry is a fantastic indigenous industry and it is up to us as legislators to protect the 12,000 jobs across the country. I will support the Bill and hope that others in both Houses will do likewise.