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

As the Deputy is aware, the new and ambitious €1.3bn Forestry Programme 2023-2027 will replace the previous Programme which expired at the end of 2022.

The new Programme is subject to State Aid approval under the Guidelines from the EU Commission. It is also subject to an ongoing Strategic Environmental Assessment and Appropriate Assessment process, which is well advanced. 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 1 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.

The Department has been engaging proactively and intensively with the Commission over the last few months in order to secure approval. Once it is received, we will be in a position to launch new forestry schemes, subject to finalisation of the Strategic Environmental Assessment.

Not all schemes under the Programme require State Aid approval under the Guidelines and on 24 April 2023, under the Agricultural Block Exemption Regulation, my Department opened two schemes for applications, the Forest Roads Scheme and the Innovative Forest Technology Scheme – Module 2 Investment Aid for the Development of the Forest Tree Nursery Sector.

In recognition of the need for forestry activity to continue, and pending the launch of the new Programme, my Department also engaged with the Commission last December to secure an interim solution which has led to the introduction of an Interim Afforestation Scheme, an Interim Forest Road Scheme and an interim Ash Dieback Reconstitution and Underplanting Scheme via General De Minimis. This ensured that those with valid afforestation licences issued before the end of 2022 could avail of the current planting season under the higher grant and premium rates proposed under the new Programme.

Likewise, those with valid road licences and approvals under the Ash Dieback Scheme at the end of 2022 could avail of the higher grants and enhanced payment rates as proposed under the new Programme.

While we await State Aid approval, my Department is continuing to process applications that are in the system in the normal manner, progressing to the point just before certification and approval. The aim is to have processed as many grant aid applications as possible so that approvals will be ready to issue as soon as allowable.

As Minister in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, I remain fully committed to delivering a fully functioning licensing system which will meet the needs of the sector and of society and which matches the ambition of the new Forestry Programme, which includes keeping resources under review.

Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

363. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when the consultation period for the Strategic Environmental Assessment of the Forestry Programme will take place; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31840/23]

Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

364. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if an individual, company or association can lodge a submission or objection to the Strategic Environmental Assessment of the Forestry Programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31841/23]

Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

365. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when he expects to complete the Strategic Environmental Assessment of the Forestry Programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31842/23]

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

I propose to take Questions Nos. 363, 364 and 365 together.

As the Deputy may be aware, the new and ambitious €1.3bn Forestry Programme 2023-2027 will replace the previous Programme which expired at the end of 2022.

The new Programme will benefit farmers, rural communities and our overall climate and environment.

The new Programme is subject to State Aid approval under the Guidelines in the agricultural and forestry sectors and in rural areas from the European Commission. It is also subject to an ongoing Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and Appropriate Assessment process, which is well advanced. The Forest Strategy Implementation Plan (including the Forestry programme 2023-2027) was published with the associated SEA Environmental Report and AA Natura Impact Report on 18 October 2022 for a six-week period of public consultation. The consultation was open to all interested parties including, but not limited to, an individual, company or association. My Department received more than 150 submissions.

My Department has been engaging proactively and intensively with the Commission in order to secure this approval. The position at the moment is that the Commission is reviewing our State Aid Notification and will decide whether the aid proposed under the new Programme is compatible with EU rules. To this end, I can confirm that my Department received further correspondence relating to our application from the Commission on 6 and 21 June which will require a response. My Department will now respond to this correspondence comprehensively in as efficient a timeframe as possible.

Once State Aid approval has been granted, the Strategic Environmental Assessment can be finalised, after incorporating any relevant outcomes of this process.

The launch of the Forestry Programme 2023-2027 is a matter of the utmost priority, as a comprehensive and well-subscribed Forestry Programme has the potential to deliver lasting benefits for climate change, biodiversity, wood production, economic development and quality of life.

Carol Nolan (Laois-Offaly, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

366. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to provide an update on the Forestry Programme 2023-2027 and the impact of delivering same, given the delays regarding a formal State aid notification by the EU Commission to Ireland; if he will set out details of any additional information required by the EU Commission; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31852/23]

Violet-Anne Wynne (Clare, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

373. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason for the six-month delay in the Government publishing the Forestry Programme for 2024; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31897/23]

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

I propose to take Questions Nos. 366 and 373 together.

As the Deputies are aware, the new and ambitious €1.3bn Forestry Programme 2023-2027 will replace the previous Programme which expired at the end of 2022.

The new Programme is subject to State Aid approval under the Guidelines from the EU Commission. It is also subject to an ongoing Strategic Environmental Assessment and Appropriate Assessment process, which is well advanced. 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 01 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.

The Department has been engaging proactively and intensively with the Commission over the last few months in order to secure approval. Once it is received, we will be in a position to launch new forestry schemes, subject to finalization of the Strategic Environmental Assessment.