Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 17 June 2021
403. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of the Backlog Working Group established as part of Project Woodland; the suggestions by the Group to solve the forestry licencing crisis; his plans for the implementation of these recommendations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32676/21]
View answerThe clearing of the backlog of licences is a priority for myself and Minister of State Pippa Hackett, who is responsible for forestry. Increased resources have been invested in dealing with files on hand and, under Project Woodland, a dedicated group, Working Group 1, is tasked with looking at the backlog.
This Group has already met nine times and has examined in detail the cases on hand and is producing specific recommendations for improving output, including a definition of the backlog, which will be brought to the Project Board for consideration. Furthermore, the group on Forestry Policy is meeting next week at which a full update on progress to date will be provided to all stakeholders.
