John Ellis
Ceist:1 Mr. Ellis asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry when his Department will issue the new forestry programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10473/96]
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Forestry Programme.
I expect to publish the strategic plan for the development of the forestry sector next month.
Last October we were promised that the strategic plan would be published in a few months. We were then promised it would be published after Christmas and then after Easter. At that time the newspapers had little else to report and they published a long statement by the Minister of State to the effect that the plan would be published within days, given the difficulties between the Minister and the Department of the Environment had been resolved. Will the Minister indicate what quality structuring the strategic plan will recommend should be put in place to guarantee the production of superior forest products?
I regret the delay in publishing the strategic plan as much as anyone else. The principal reason for it is that the consultants hired by the former Government were due to complete their work in December 1994, but they did not complete their report until July 1995 and an amount of supplementary work regarding saw log sales was required. There is a good deal of dissatisfaction about the sale system among Coillte's saw log buyers. Planning controls on forestry had to be negotiated with the Department of the Environment and an economic analysis on the investment, from a Department of Finance and an EU perspective, had to be carried out. I completed my Department's consideration of it some weeks ago and it has been sent for circulation to key Departments. I hope to bring a memorandum to Government in the next week or two and it will take another two weeks before the plan will be printed, some of the arrangements in that regard have been made. Anything that may cause delay is being dealt with as quickly as possible.
I take it that the report commissioned by the original consultants by the then Minister of State, Deputy Hyland, forms the basis of the strategic plan, given that it appears other consultants have not been recruited? Have other consultants being recruited?
I have had a big input into the strategic plan as it is covers a sector of major development potential.
What expertise has the Minister in this area?
With my civil servants, I have devoted a good deal of time to preparing the strategic plan.
Civil servants did also? I thought the Minister had taken it all upon himself.
The Deputy should avoid questioning the Minister at this time and remember who tabled the question.
I always welcome interruptions from Deputy Cowen.
The Deputy should not intervene at this stage, his questions will be taken shortly.
I intervened for the purpose of accuracy.
The Deputy's interventions only serve to elucidate on the quality of work we are doing in this area. This strategic plan is crucial given that, unlike in the case of milk and meat, there is no production quota limits on forestry. Given our favourable climate, tax and EU grant allocation, there are real opportunities to create an extra 11,000 jobs in this sector over the next 20 years and to build it into a multibillion pound industry, one for which there is significant export potential. I hope this strategy will form a blueprint for that.
Will the Minister indicate if the strategic plan will introduce guidelines to cover the annual monitoring of the maintenance of our forests for the first ten years after planting?
I do not want to pre-empt the publication of the strategic plan and the Deputy's question raises a separate issue. I am concerned about a number of aspects concerning the quality of forestry production. A four year inspection procedure to collect premia applies to forests planted on foot of a forest grant. We are not satisfied with the uniform level of forestry management and various strictures, incentives and other inducements will be introduced to improve forestry management vis-à-vis training and specialist skills. The Deputy referred to an important area that will form part of the strategy plan.
Will it take account of environmental considerations?
Yes.