The Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has indicated that it will request the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) to appear before it to “talk about forestry and carbon sequestration specifically within the next months”.
Social Democrats TD for Kildare North, Catherine Murphy, raised a query at a meeting of the PAC in relation to the forestry division of DAFM and the “sanction” of €1.38 billion that has been allocated to the next Forestry Programme (2023-2027).
“Can we ask the exact date on which this sanction was granted? Were the Departments of Public Expenditure and Reform and the Environment, Climate and Communications fully briefed?
“Regarding the Gresham House investment, when did they come into play in this regard? Was that before or after the sanction? I am not quite sure where that is at presently,” Deputy Murphy said.
The deputy was referring to the controversial Gresham House/Coillte-backed forestry fund.
London-headquartered Gresham House issued a news release on January 6, 2023, confirming details of a new fund – the Irish Strategic Forestry Fund – that was backed by Coillte, the semi-state company.
The chair of the PAC, Brian Stanley, the Sinn Féin TD for Laois-Offaly, suggested to committee members that “as we will be dealing with the 2021 accounts of the department, I suggest that we bring in the department to talk about forestry and carbon sequestration specifically within the next months”.
However, Deputy Murphy believes that other departments may need to be included in this process including the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and potentially the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications.
“It quite difficult to see where this lands or where the buck stops. To be perfectly honest, in the case of most of us, our jaws are still not quite settled after hearing about the Gresham House investment or even where that is at,” the Social Democrats TD added.
Forestry plans
Tánaiste Micheál Martin has previously said that “farmers will have to be the biggest drivers” of the state’s afforestation programme.
The Tánaiste told the Dáil that “there will be no privatisation of public land”.
“We are not planting enough trees at the moment at all. We really have to grow exponentially the amount of trees, particularly native woodlands, and I want more purchase of land for native woodlands in this country,” he stated.
Meanwhile, the issue of the Gresham House/Coillte-backed forestry fund is expected to be a key subject of discussion at the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) 68th annual general meeting (AGM) today (Tuesday, January 24).
The Taoiseach will have an opportunity to directly address farmers at the AGM and all three ministers at the DAFM, including Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue and Ministers of State, Pippa Hackett and Martin Heydon, will take part in a question and answer session.