Pádraig O'Sullivan
Question:1040. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when the 2019 McKinnon report will be implemented; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11144/21]
View answerWednesday, 3 March 2021
Questions (1040, 1041)
Pádraig O'Sullivan
Question:1041. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will appoint an independent project manager to oversee the implementation of the McKinnon report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11146/21]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 1040 and 1041 together.
In July 2019, former Minister of State Andrew Doyle commissioned Mr. James Mackinnon CBE (former Chief Planner with the Scottish Government) to review the forestry licensing process. During the review, Mr. Mackinnon met with various industry stakeholders, administrative and technical personnel of my Department, other State agencies, landowners and interest groups.
His report, ‘Review of Approval Processes for Afforestation in Ireland’ , which was published in November 2019, made various recommendations or “Ways forward” aimed at improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the licensing approval process, as well as dealing with broader issues relating to encouraging woodland creation. In response to these recommendations, a draft Implementation Plan was set up, in co-operation with the Forestry Programme Implementation Group, DAFM personnel, the COFORD promotion group, and other stakeholders.
Work on the implementation of the actions included in the draft plan started straight away and has been ongoing since. Significant progress has been made on a variety of the recommendations included in the Mackinnon report and I would in particular like to highlight the following developments:
- Additional resources have been recruited in my Department, including 21 ecologists, to deal with the new Appropriate Assessment work. Further resources will be recruited shortly and requirements are constantly reviewed.
- The Forestry Miscellaneous Provisions Act came into force in October 2020. Such has been the effect of this legislation that we now expect the Forestry Appeals Committee to be in a position to clear all cases that are currently before it by the end of June this year.
- Guidance and templates on the new licence application process have been provided to registered foresters with a view to improving the quality of applications received by my officials.
- A Forestry Licence Viewer was launched towards the end of 2020 giving all members of the public full visibility on forestry licence applications.
- The ‘Creation of Woodlands on Public Lands’ Scheme was published in autumn 2020.
Work on finalising the Mackinnon Implementation plan was recently carried out by Jo O’Hara, former head of Scottish Forestry. Ms. O’Hara interviewed a variety of stakeholders as part of her review and has completed her report with recommendations and findings on the implementation of the Mackinnon Report. Minister Hackett, who has responsibility for forestry, has accepted Ms O'Hara's recommendations and we jointly announced on 25th February 2021 the establishment of Project Woodland which will adopt the project management structure set out in Ms. O’Hara’s report. The report is available on my Department’s website at the following link: https://www.gov.ie/en/collection/e43d8-forestry-policy-group-chaired-by-mos-hackett/
This project management structure will consist of a Project Board, Project Manager and 4 individual workstreams working with the principles of clear accountability and reporting. The workstreams will work concurrently, focusing on different areas. The first one will concentrate on the backlog, the second on a vision for forestry, the third on devising a fit for purpose organisational structure, and the fourth on streamlining the licensing process for the future. Project Woodland will be held to account by a Project Board which will report to my colleague Minister Hackett. The Project Board will be chaired by the Secretary General of my Department and will have another 3 members from outside the Department, including Ms O'Hara, with specific expertise in relevant areas. The Project Manager will be responsible for co-ordinating the work carried out in the 4 workstreams and will report to the Project Board.
Each workstream will be supported by a working group made up of stakeholders and will be chaired by an experienced external person. I believe that this new structure will help us draw on the expertise and input of all stakeholders in the forestry sector as we develop a new vision for forestry. It will provide opportunities for stakeholders on all sides to offer feedback and contribute to working groups.