Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

781. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the total number of hectares of land disposed of by Coillte, by year and by county, since 1988; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4581/23]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Coillte is a private limited company established under the Forestry Act 1988 and is operationally independent from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. I have referred the matter to Coillte for direct follow-up with the Deputy.

Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

787. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the person who signed the shareholder letter of expectation to Coillte on 2 June 2022 on behalf of the State; the details of the letter; if the letter will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4587/23]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies requires that Government  Departments  should  ensure  that  they  have  written  oversight agreements  with  State  bodies  under  their  aegis  which  clearly  define  the terms of the State body’s relationship with the relevant Minister/parent Department.

For commercial State bodies the oversight agreement between the relevant Minister/parent Department and the State body is the Shareholder Expectation Letter.

A Shareholder letter of Expectation issued from Minister Hackett to Coillte on 2nd June 2022, as the powers and duties conferred on the Minister by the Forestry Act 1988 have been delegated to Minister of State Hackett under S.I. 40 of 2021. The Shareholder Letter was co-signed by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Michael McGrath.

I am looking at the potential release of the letter subject to the standard issues around commercial sensitivities. I will review this matter together with the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform and inform the Deputy and other interested parties of our decision in due course.

Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

789. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the amount of land that has been purchased to date in Ireland for use in the new forestry deal between Coillte and a company (details supplied); where is this located; and the amount it cost. [4618/23]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

793. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine on what date and by whom from Coillte was the first communication between Coillte and a company (details supplied). [4622/23]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 789 and 793 together.

Coillte is a private limited company established under the Forestry Act 1988 and is operationally independent from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. I have referred these matters to Coillte for direct follow-up with the Deputy.

Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

791. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to provide for the dates and attendees he and or his junior minister have had with Coillte since they took office, in tabular form. [4620/23]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Since taking office there has been several meetings with Coillte, myself and the Minister of State. 

The list of meetings are as follows

Minister McConalogue

8th September 2020

meeting with Coillte and Minister McConalogue

Wednesday 10 February 2021

Meeting with Coillte and Minister McConalogue

Friday 7 May 2021

Meeting with Coillte , Minister McConalogue Minister Hackett (webex)

Thursday 8 July 2021

Meeting with Coillte

Friday 13 January 2022 

Meeting with Coillte , Minister McConalogue Minister Hackett (webex)

Thursday 19 January 2023

Meeting with Coillte , Minister McConalogue Minister Hackett

Minister of state

7th July 2020

17:45 Ag house Meeting with Coillte and Minister Cowen

27 July 2020

Meeting with Coillte Minister Calleary Webex @ 18:15pm

8th September 2020

18:00pm meeting with Coillte and Minister McConalogue

29th October 2020

@ 10:00am meeting with Coillte and Minister McConalogue

03 November 2020

Presentation by Coillte Nature via Webex @ 16.30pm

11 December 2020

Coillte tree planting Dublin Mountains Ticknock @ 11.00am

Wednesday 10 February 2021

11:30 - 12:30 meeting with Coillte and Minister McConalogue

Thursday 18 March

13:00 - 13:45 Meeting With Coillte .

Tuesday 30 March

11:00 - 12:00 Coillte

Monday 12 April 2021

12:00 - 13:30 Coillte & Minister Ryan (Zoom)

Friday 7 May 2021

11:30 - 12:30 Meeting with Coillte , Minister McConalogue Minister Hackett (webex)

Monday 31 May 2021

10:00 - 13:00 Visit to Avondale Wicklow Coillte (Wicklow)

Friday 13 August: 2021

10:00 - 11:00 Coillte/AXA Launch/Photocall (Cruagh Forest/Carpark)

Monday 22 November 2021

11:00 - 12:30 MoS meeting Imelda Hurley Coillte (Conference Room A)

Wednesday 24 November 2021

13:30 - 14:00 Coillte / EBS photo call (Government buildings )

Thursday 13 January 2022

12:00 - 13:30 Meeting Coillte - Imelda Hurley & Mark Carlin (Virtual)

Thursday 27 January 2022

16:00 - 17:00 Minister Ryan Coillte (zoom )

19 January 2023

12.00pm  Meeting with Coillte , Minister McConalogue Minister Hackett.

Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

795. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when did his advisers or any of the Minister for State’s advisers become aware of the forestry deal between Coillte and a company (details supplied). [4624/23]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Coillte is a private limited company established under the Forestry Act 1988 and is operationally independent from the Minister and  Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. I am, therefore, not in position to comment on any operational issues relating to the establishment of the new investment fund.  Neither my Department nor myself were involved in the establishment of the Fund.

In relation to the issue of balanced afforestation, this Government has committed €1.3 billion to the new Forestry Programme.  The  primary aim of the Programme is to enable Ireland to use its potential for afforestation to help meet its national emission reduction and biodiversity obligations while, at the same time, supporting the forestry sector and farm families. This is biggest and best-funded Forestry Programme ever introduced by any Government here, and it has been designed to ensure that farmers will be its primary beneficiaries.

Coillte advised the Department of its intention to increase its afforestation during the development of their new Forestry Strategic Vision, which was launched on 21st April 2022. In meetings with Minister of State Hackett and myself as well as our officials dating back to 2021, Coillte indicated that it would be an enabler of new afforestation through the Coillte Nature initiative for planting native woodlands and through their involvement in Afforestation Funds focussed on commercial forestry.  The confirmation to Minister Hackett and I as well as our respective offices that this Fund was operational and the identity of all parties to the deal came in a letter sent by Coillte to my Department on 16th December 2022. 

Coillte will not sell any existing publicly owned forests to the fund, nor will Coillte seek to purchase any other public land on behalf of the fund. Any land purchased by the fund will already be in private ownership, and no private landowner will be forced to sell land to the fund. The scale of the new planting envisaged is such that Coillte does not expect the establishment of the fund to have an impact on the price of farmland, nor indeed is it in any way in the interest of Coillte or the fund to drive up land prices at a time that they are seeking to acquire land.

Senior representatives of Coillte  met with myself and Minister Hackett on 19th January and outlined their intention that the Irish Strategic Forestry Fund will plant an average of 700 hectares of new forests across each of the next five years.  They advised that the total area of new forests planted through the fund will deliver roughly 3.5% of the 100,000 hectares of new forests Coillte has committed to enabling by 2050.  They further outlined that the Fund is one of a number of models Coillte will deploy in contributing to the States overall forestry targets. The Government has been clear that this is not our preferred model for delivery of the afforestation targets and we have asked Coillte to consider a range of options and revert to us with some ideas for other delivery models.