Garret Ahearn (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the Chamber and welcome her home, if I can put it that way. I thank her for the very effective and strong work she has been doing in her portfolio for almost two years. I urge her to continue with that work because it is very important.

As other speakers have said, everyone accepts that this Bill is necessary and legislates for a commitment made by the previous Government. In fairness to the three businesses in question, they also recognise that. They have wanted to work with the Government, Department and Minister on how to do that best. That is the real issue. We are here to speak on their behalf because they are in a very difficult situation. This is one of the first times a Government has decided to close all the businesses in a sector. How we do that and support and compensate these businesses is very important.

Last summer, these businesses made numerous calls for an opportunity to appear before the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine to air their views during the pre-legislative scrutiny stage. They had to fight for an opportunity to speak and it was important for them to do that. On the back of that, it is frustrating for them that they have not seen any development. They probably feel they have been left out of the loop. As previous speakers noted, these people have certain issues they want addressed. They made five asks at a committee meeting held during the pre-legislative scrutiny stage of the Bill. I have been asked to put these forward today. They relate to staff redundancy and reskilling, particularly in rural areas. The three affected businesses are located in County Donegal, County Laois and Waterville, County Kerry. They are seeking agreement to compensation for farmers; agreement on costs for the demolition of farms, which is crucial; an environmental assessment of the area of the farm prior to demolition; and the opportunity to view and discuss the report compiled by the Department's auditors, Grant Thornton. The businesses believe they have not had the opportunity to do any of these things because they have not had engagement. They welcome a compensation package, which is important, but they need to know what it will be.

The two main questions are very simple. When will the businesses close and what will the compensation be? The talk that the compensation will be based on earnings over the previous five years seems very unfair because those were loss-making years. It would be much fairer on the businesses to extend that period to seven or ten years. That has been done in other jurisdictions so it would not be unique.

The real ask is for information. These people totally understand that their businesses must close. Some of them want to go on to a different life or career or start another business. None of that is possible until they know what type of compensation they are to get and how much they will get for the demolitions on their lands, which can be tricky and costly. They need to have that information as soon as possible. As previous speakers have said, this situation does not just concern employers but employees as well. They need to be able to upskill and they need opportunities somewhere else.

These are businesses in rural Ireland. We are trying to encourage people to leave city centres and have a life, job, career and better quality of life. In counties Donegal, Laois, Kerry and my home county of Tipperary we try to offer that but we need to ensure it is available. I stress the importance of being open with these businesses and letting them know as quickly as possible when decisions will be made and how much compensation they will receive when the source of their livelihoods is closed down.

On forestry, I welcome what the Minister of State has announced. The position in forestry is improving month on month, which is extremely important for County Tipperary. There are numerous sawmills in the county, including Dunnes Sawmills in Drangan, Sheehan Sawmills in Ballyporeen and Dundrum Sawmills. These companies employ an awful lot of people, do good business and provide good jobs in rural areas. It is hugely important that they are viable and that the Department processes forestry licences as quickly as possible. I acknowledge that the process has sped up on the Minister of State's watch. When there is improvement people want more and faster improvements. That is an understandable demand. I wish the Minister of State well with the legislation and in the work she is doing.