Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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889. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the expected timeframe for the commencement of the new forestry programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6609/23]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy will be aware that the Department has recently secured funding of €1.3 billion for the Forestry Programme 2023-2027. Subject to State Aid approval, this will support the biggest and best-funded Forestry Programme to date in Ireland. This funding provides unprecedented incentives to encourage the planting of trees that can provide a valuable addition to farm income and also to help meet our national climate and biodiversity objectives.

The launch of the Forestry Programme 2023-2027 is a matter that is being taken very seriously by my Department and I would like to assure the Deputy that it is a matter of the highest priority.

The Forestry Programme 2023-2027 is currently subject to an ongoing Strategic Environmental Assessment/Appropriate Assessment (SEA/AA) process. Within this process, the draft Forest Strategy Implementation plan, containing the Forestry Programme was published on the 18 October 2022 for a six-week period of public consultation. My Department is currently collating and integrating feedback from more than 150 submissions on the Forest Strategy Implementation Plan. The Forestry Programme 2023-2027 also requires State Aid to implement and the SEA/AA process is a critical step in the process of securing this State Aid approval.

The previous State Aid Guidelines in the agricultural and forestry sectors and in rural areas expired on 31 December 2022 and have now been replaced with a revised version as of 1st January 2023. The introduction of these revised guidelines meant that a formal application for State Aid could not have been submitted to the European Commission until the revised guidelines were in place, i.e. before January 2023.

Cognisant of the importance of implementing the new Forestry Programme as early as possible in 2023, and of the constraint that we could not submit a formal application for State Aid in 2022, the Department secured the agreement of the European Commission to facilitate a pre-notification in November 2022.

My Department is actively engaging with the Commission, and is working intensively towards securing full State Aid approval for the Programme as soon as possible.

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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890. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he is concerned about the viability of the forestry nursery sector, given the repeatedly low levels of afforestation in recent years, compounded by limited afforestation for 2023 and the suspension of various support schemes with the new programme not being ratified; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6610/23]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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We recently secured funding of €1.3 billion for the Forestry Programme 2023-2027. Subject to State Aid approval, this will support the biggest and best-funded Forestry Programme to date in Ireland. This funding provides unprecedented incentives to encourage the planting of trees that can provide a valuable addition to farm income and also to help meet our national climate and biodiversity objectives.

In 2022 we saw a significant increase in the issuing of afforestation licences, with my Department issuing 702 afforestation licences for an area of 4,972 hectares. Valid unused Afforestation licences are being extended until the end of 2023 to give landowners every opportunity to plant and they will attract increased premium rates and a longer term of 20 years for farmers.

In relation to the new forestry programme my Department is actively engaging with the Commission with a view to securing full State Aid approval as soon as possible.

In terms of afforestation and road applications which were applied for before 31st December, 2022, but not issued, we are continuing to process these so that they can transition into the new Programme as seamlessly as possible when it opens.