Written Answers Nos. 329-337
329. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will formally stand down the chairman, board and executive of Horse Sport Ireland and appoint independent investigators to determine the extent of the problems and governance issues in the organisation and to recommend a pathway forward for the industry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [58568/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra331. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will ensure that all appointments to the board of Horse Sport Ireland reflect the highest standards possible and a range of interested parties that will have the collective professionalism to address the legacy issues restore confidence and set the organisation on a pathway to success. [58570/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 329 and 331 together.
As the Deputy may be aware, in consultation with the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media Catherine Martin TD and the Minister of State for Sport and the Gaeltacht Jack Chambers TD, I recently appointed an interim chairman and three board members to the Board of Horse Sport Ireland.
This interim Board will provide the experience, expertise and professionalism needed to restore confidence and guide the organisation to the benefit of the industry. I am confident that the new Board members will provide stability to the organisation and will remain in-situ until after the 2024 Paris Olympics.
330. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason that the position of CEO of Horse Sport Ireland was a temporary contract for six months; the reason that this contract was extended for a further six months; the action that was taken by the Board or his Department, legal or otherwise arising from the vote of no confidence in the CEO passed by the Board; if the newly appointed HR member of staff and the legal counsel took any action to protect Horse Sport Ireland and implement the decision of the Board and inform his Department; if legal proceedings are being taken by the CEO or others against Horse Sport Ireland relative to this or other matters; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [58569/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe appointment of the CEO and the terms and conditions of that appointment are a matter for the Board of HSI. I am not aware of any legal proceedings regarding these matters.
332. Deputy Paul Kehoe asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the date that his Department began discussions with the nursery sector in relation to next forestry programme which is due to commence on 1 January 2023; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [58582/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra334. Deputy Paul Kehoe asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the additional native species required by nurseries in adjusting from 15% to 20% mandatory broadleaves on conifer sites; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [58584/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra335. Deputy Paul Kehoe asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the estimated surpluses of sitka spruce already in nursery production as a result of reducing the sitka spruce component by 5% on commercial afforestation sites; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [58585/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra336. Deputy Paul Kehoe asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the length of time that it will take nurseries to produce plants in order to meet planting requirements of the various forestry types set out in the forestry strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [58586/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra337. Deputy Paul Kehoe asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if the financial implications for nurseries have been considered by his Department given that there is no phasing-in or phasing-out period for their crops prior to the commencement for the new programme which was announced in November, and due to commence in January; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [58587/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 332, 334, 335, 336 and 337 together.
As the Deputy may be aware, my Department has recently published a Shared National Vision for Trees, Woods and Forests in Ireland until 2050 which was informed by a series of extensive engagements and consultations.
This vision has informed a new Forestry Strategy for Ireland, which has been developed through Project Woodland. An extensive public consultation process on the new Strategy has taken place including bilateral stakeholder meetings early in 2022 which included the nursery sector and Forest Industries Ireland who represent the sector.
In parallel, a draft Forest Strategy Implementation Plan has also been developed to facilitate the initial steps in the implementation of this Forest Strategy. This Plan comprises a list of actions and measures and includes the Forestry Programme for the period 2023-2027, which will be the main implementation vehicle for the Forest Strategy in the immediate to short term.
The Department held bilateral meetings with Forest Industry Ireland on the new Forestry Programme and also held a workshop for Forestry Policy Group members in July 2022, including members from the nursery sector to discuss proposed measures and interventions.
The importance of having a sustainable supply of plants and forest reproductive material is recognised in the Draft Forest Strategy and within its Implementation Plan. Action 49 in the draft Plan includes the introduction of support schemes to increase the quality and quantity of plants and forest reproductive material. The implementation of this action is accounted for in the Draft Forestry Programme under Intervention 1 (Forest Creation: FT3 Seed Orchards), Intervention 3 (Investment Aid for the Development of the Forest Tree Nursery Sector) and Intervention 4 (Sustainable Forest Management: Seed Stand Management). Taken together these support schemes aim to increase the quantity and quality of plants and reproductive material for use in the forest sector.
The draft Forest Strategy and Forest Strategy Implementation Plan were published on Tuesday the 18th of October and are now subject to an ongoing six-week public consultation process which concludes on the 29th of November 2022 and submissions on these documents are welcome.
The COFORD Council and its working groups are key stakeholder platforms for Irish forestry. The COFORD Council is an advisory body appointed by the Minister to advise on matters relating to forestry and includes a wide range of stakeholders including representatives from the two largest forest tree nurseries. The COFORD Council established a sub-group called the Forest Genetic Resources Working Group and its membership includes forest tree nurseries, Teagasc, National Botanic Gardens, University College Dublin, Woodland of Ireland, Northern Ireland Forest Service, National Parks and Wildlife Service and is chaired by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. In December 2020, the COFORD Council published their work in their report called “Sustainable Development and Conservation of Forest Genetic Resources 2020-2030”. This report identifies key recommendations, including an analysis of the existing forest reproductive material supply needs, likely future trends and barriers to future supply for the period 2020 - 2030.
I am pleased to advise that I have secured a package of €1.3 billion for forestry which will support the biggest and best-funded Forestry Programme to date in Ireland. As the Deputy is aware the afforestation target outlined in the draft Forestry Programme remains at 8,000 ha. This target is consistent with the Climate Action Plan 2021, and the current Forestry Programme (2014-2020, extended to end 2022). As I understand it producing plants takes up to approximately three years before they are ready for planting.
Trees numbers required will depend on the take up of any particular measure and will be based on our existing stocking rates of 2,500 per hectare for conifers and 3,300 trees per hectare for most broadleaves. With low planting rates in recent years, it is forecast that demand will grow over the course of the Programme and this will be a positive development for the nursery sector. We engage regularly with the representative body for the forestry sector on all relevant issues and will continue to do so. Of key importance will be the need to work together to build momentum and increase afforestation rates.
333. Deputy Paul Kehoe asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the date that his Department started discussions with the nursery sector in relation to the proposed ACRES scheme which is due to commence on 1 January 2023; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [58583/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) is the agri-environment climate measure under Ireland’s CAP Strategic Plan (CSP) 2023 – 2027.
The Department engaged extensively with all stakeholders in relation to the development of Ireland’s CSP. The CAP Consultative Committee was established in May 2019 to allow stakeholders express their views and remain updated as the CAP reform discussions progress.
The Committee met on 33 Occasions, which included thematic workshops on the Green Architecture and proposed interventions, one of which was the agri-environment climate measure, now known as ACRES. Meeting documents and presentations were subsequently published on my Department’s website at: CAP Post 2020 Consultative Committee.
The Department also arranged a series of townhall meetings as well as public consultations to provide as much information as possible and for stakeholder input, including three virtual townhall meetings on 10, 11 and 12 August 2021 and fourteen Information Sessions held nationwide in February and March 2022.
Representatives from the relevant Divisions in the Department also held over a hundred meetings with various representative organisations. The Divisions dealing specifically with the development of ACRES met with Forest Industries Ireland, a group which brings together companies from across the forest sector including nurseries, in September and November 2021.
As both eco-schemes and ACRES offer tree planting options, my Department issued ‘Trader Notice No.12 of 2021 – Tree and hedgerow planting proposed under CAP 2023-2027’ in December 2021. The purpose of this notice was to update the industry on the proposed schemes and to advise on the anticipated strong farmer demand for trees and hedging plants over the period 2023- 2027.
This notice advised that tree/hedgerow planting under ACRES was expected to commence in the 2023-2024 planting season and provided estimates of the number and species of trees and hedging plants that may be required by farmers participating in the Scheme.
Draft specifications for ACRES were subsequently published in August 2022 which again listed the eligible species for the tree-planting and hedgerow actions, with the final Specifications published in early October 2022.
