Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South-West, Fianna Fail)

I am blown away and heartened by the number of contributions, the level of contributions and the passion in the contributions. It is great to see this level of interest across the House. I would love to see that level of passion replicated in the Dáil as well. I will try to get to as many of the points raised by the Senators, starting with Senator Flaherty in the Chair. He acknowledged the efforts of the then Minister of State, Senator Noonan, which came across well. I might not have hammed it up enough in my opening speech. I thought I had covered all bases. The Senator was extraordinary in the role he did and bringing the National Parks and Wildlife Service from where it was to where it is now. They are big shoes to fill and there is a big onus on me to continue that work. I again thank Senator Noonan for that.

The Senator is right that there is no freshwater national park. I have been to Lough Ree. I have been to visit the breeding waders programme there and the Black Islands. It is an extraordinary place, it really is. It definitely gets you thinking as to whether it merits national park status. I am certainly sold on it in terms of the scale and size of it. The National Parks and Wildlife Service has acquired land there and will seek to acquire more in collaboration but the Senator has hit the nail on the head in terms of the traditional form of farming. I love the collaboration there between the farmers, the type of grazing management they do and how that then encourages breeding waders to flourish, respond and increase in numbers. It certainly merits further investigation and I will pursue that even further.

I will touch on the NARGC because many Senators raised that issue. It is a group I am more than willing to work with. I like the collaboration we have seen so far. The mink eradication was mentioned. I genuinely see gun clubs across Ireland as a key tool in nature preservation in helping breeding waders and helping monitor our bird species, including duck species. There is key data that the gun clubs have that we can really use in terms of preserving nature. The one commonality is that we all care about the preservation of nature. The memorandum of understanding, MOU, is being reviewed because all our Department's MOUs are being reviewed. We have not just pinpointed the NARGC. Unfortunately, I am limited in terms of what I can say in public or what I can say in this forum because of an ongoing judicial review, which creates problems. Other than that, I cannot say much more other than I really want to continue to work with the NARGC and the conservation efforts on which we have already embarked.

TB is certainly an issue for the Department of agriculture. The Minister, Deputy Heydon, recently announced a TB eradication scheme. Something to keep in mind is that there was a recent survey done and 85% of the thousands of badgers that were culled were free of TB. We have to be careful in terms of how we approach this. Certainly, there is no intention to reduce culling rates at the moment but increasing it could create problems in terms of those levels of badgers that are free of TB. We have to be careful that we do not use a sledgehammer to break a nut.

Senator Joe Conway called for a midlands national park, which is something I will pursue and look at. It is good that he mentioned the corn crake as well. We are hearing it again and seeing a bounceback throughout the west coast.

It was great to see Senator Murphy's vast knowledge of national parks and the different species that live within them. He kind of took the wind out of my sails, to be honest, in terms of going through all the different species, habitats and scenery that you see. I will make special mention of the Burren, which is extraordinary. Visiting the Burren taught me a lot about how managed grazing, farming and working with farmers can create this unbelievable tapestry of habitats. Essentially, the Burren is a man-made national park in many ways. It formed over many centuries because of the different land uses. We now have this absolute gem of a limestone grassland national park, which we have every intention of keeping that way. The stone walls are one of the most important features there. The stone walls are an essential habitat for many species. I really look forward to hearing about the initiative coming online in terms of protecting stone walls. From a heritage point of view, and as I have said to the Senator before, if there is anything I can do to help, I certainly will.

In response to Senator McCormack, Laois has lots of amazing bogland. It really does. I would not rule that out. It is a unique habitat. Laois has some of the most important, pristine boglands. Not far from Laois but in the Senator's own constituency, Lough Boora is an example of what can be done with reclaimed bogs and protecting species to see them flourish. For example, we have seen the crane breed in Ireland once again for the first time this millennium because of the level of collaboration and work that goes on there. I cannot overstep the mark to say whether we will have a Laois national park but it certainly is a fabulous county. That proves the point that right throughout Ireland, we have some of the most extraordinary habitats. It is just about protecting it. They have been degraded and going in the wrong direction for far too long but with the work that the then Minister of State, Senator Noonan, did and, hopefully, I can continue, we can start to see that reversed.

Very few could speak with the knowledge Senator Noonan has. I will come back to the park staff, including rangers, in a minute. The Senator knows, as he has met them. They are extraordinary people. The passion they have is infectious. When I meet them, it spurs me on to do more. If everyone could get a little drop of that level of passion they have for nature, wildlife and for their patch, Ireland's wildlife and biodiversity outlook would be so much better. I do not think they see themselves as working a day in their lives. That is the way I would put it.

The national park legislation will 100% look at that. There are other legislative measures that the Senator did not have time to get through in that short five years that I would love to talk about progressing with him.

On the LIFE projects, the Senator should take some comfort in the fact that if Europe does not step up to the mark by continuing to fund the LIFE projects, we will. The National Parks and Wildlife Service sees an important role for itself in that. Generally, LIFE projects are only five years long anyway, so there has to be life after LIFE projects. We see an important role for ourselves in that, whether it is under the farm plans, collaboration with agriculture or something else. That is really important.

In response to Senator Loughlin, I will of course come to visit the Curragh, which I pass every single week. I completely appreciate the nature, value and heritage of it. I promise the Senator I will visit the Curragh. We will do a trip around to see all aspects of what makes it the special place it is. It is amazing in many ways but it is a shame in other ways because we have seen the habit there really being degraded. I would love to see a management plan kick in so that we can see it come back.

Senator Kyne is not here today but he is living very near to the Connemara National Park, which is absolutely extraordinary. In the grand scheme of things, the Nation Parks and Wildlife Service is still a very small landowner. We are not looking to outcompete farmers in terms of purchasing land. It is done on a very small scale in the grand scheme of things.When we purchase land, there are conversations to be had about how that can be managed. That may include, for example, rare breeds of cattle, etc.

Senator Casey lives in a national park. We are all jealous. He will have to invite me down for a cup of tea sometime when I am down there. It is an extraordinary spot. I am ashamed to say it is the only national park I have not visited in an official capacity, but I have been there on numerous occasions unofficially. It is an extraordinary spot. With regard to Glendalough, I know the patch of land the Senator has lobbied for a long time for the State to purchase to increase the size of the Glen of the Downs. I agree it would be a good strategic move and something we should pursue. Obviously, with land sales, you have to be careful in terms of undermining any of those discussions that may be happening, but I assure the Senator that I will actively pursue and look into the increase of the Glen of the Downs Nature Reserve through acquisition, which would be very welcome.

Senator Lynch mentioned the Gearagh, which is very close to my heart and very close to where I live, even though it is in a different constituency. While the size of it may not merit a national park, there is a discussion to be had. Its current ownership is within the ESB and I would love to reach out to it to see if it would work with the National Parks and Wildlife Service to create a real landmark, best-in-class nature reserve where we could showcase the wildlife there.

I have already touched on Senator Brady’s point about the NARGC. I am always open to conversation but, again, with the ongoing judicial review, we have to be careful of what we say. I have enjoyed its collaboration so far.

To address Senator Boyle’s point, Glenveagh National Park is stunning. I have been there a couple of times in an official capacity. Its approach to conservation, eradication of invasive species and deer control is really hitting the nail on the head up there. That is why there is this amazing tapestry of habitats, which the Senator spoke about.

Our national parks are the jewel in the crown. They cover the most stunning and spectacular scenery we have in this country and they are unique. Glenveagh National Park is one of the few places where people can see golden eagles soaring over their heads. Head down to Wild Nephin National Park and people will find this incredible dark sky reserve. Connemara has these beautiful peaks and mountains. The Burren is one of the unique places on the planet with the limestone and the grasslands there. Killarney has its lakes and the white-tailed eagles are becoming far more common there because of the release project. In Wicklow, we have those gorgeous glens right on the doorstep of our capital city. It is such a great way for people to explore.

My message to people, even though we have to be responsible in how we enjoy our national parks, is to get out there and explore them. They are 100% free. There is no charge to enter our national parks. We do not have that everywhere. We are unique in that regard. Get out there and enjoy them because the more people who go into our national parks and realise, enjoy and love the beauty of nature, the better outcomes we will have for nature. We will then start to see this policy change because there will be pressure, like Senators are putting on us today, to improve nature and to see better outcomes for nature.

The rangers, ecologists and general operatives who work in our national parks are extraordinary. As I meet them in our national parks, they are so proud of their patch. They are so excited to show me their area of natural beauty, the ecology and the work that they are doing on invasive species and plant, animal and insect life. I liken it to a child showing you their Lego collection. They get excited. That is what it is like. That level of passion only augurs well for nature in Ireland. I thank them for that.