Michael Healy-Rae
Kerry · Independent · Ireland
“This motion is timely because, with the massive increases for people running their homes and businesses, people who are working have never been at more of a disadvantage because of the high cost of going to work, childcare and fuel. What we need is a more targeted approach by the Government.”
“In County Kerry alone, the number of businesses that are closing weekly is frightening. These businesses are owned by people who have been in business for many years, who are very much valued in our communities and who create local employment, but they are closing their doors. It can be small shops, public houses or gift stores.”
“We should be doing more about providing our own energy, and doing more in a forward-thinking way to try to ensure that these types of measures will help us to reduce the cost of energy.”
“However, at the end of the day, the people that we always have to consider are people on low incomes, people who are working and people who are struggling. We have to try to help them in every way we can through targeted approaches. We have to look at the bigger picture, like the high cost of fuel and the tax take on fuel.”
“I sincerely thank Deputy Charles Ward for bringing forward this important motion. It is a reasonable motion. I acknowledge the work that has been done by people from the Government and the Opposition in securing the situation with IS 465:2026. Large sums of money have been put forward to help the affected families.”
“I urge the Government to outline its position on the EU lead ammunition proposal. This is the proposal to take lead out of ammunition, which could have a negative effect on 150,000 licensed shotgun owners in Ireland.”
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“It really takes resilience and the frame of mind ingrained in our tillage farmers through simple, hard work and putting up with tough conditions and times. Everybody appreciates that work, and that is why I keep saying that politicians, the Department and those in opposition have to be so understanding of these terribly hard-working people. When the weather and markets are good, they can make a few euro, but when things turn against them, when they lose and when the weather and market are wrong, they take an awful hammering. Tillage represents one of the most unpredictable and at times unreliable forms of farming. All sectors are volatile and susceptible to market forces but fattening cattle, by comparison with tillage, can sometimes be straightforward enough.”
“With regard to the Food Vision tillage group, Food Vision 2030 outlines the importance of the tillage sector and includes an ambition to increase the area under tillage crops. Growing the tillage area is also highlighted in the climate action plan, which sets a target to increase the tillage area to 400,000 ha by 2030. The only way this will meaningfully or really happen is by all of us working together and doing everything we can to support people. Tillage farming in Ireland, given our unpredictable weather, demands a great deal of resilience. We all have to be understanding of the financial and indeed mental pressures that tillage farmers sometimes face. We have all seen that some of our summers and autumns are unbearably wet. Even where land is better than where I come from, farmers get an awful doing from wet weather.”
“While the cultivation of GMOs in the EU remains very restricted, there are emerging technologies that will allow Irish tillage farmers to gain efficiencies in crop performance, which would be very welcome. The use of new genomic techniques, commonly known as NGTs or gene-editing techniques, represents a significant development of the past two decades. The potential for NGTs to deliver crops with improved traits in a faster way than conventional breeding offers clear benefits for Irish tillage farmers, consumers and the environment. The Commission adopted a proposed regulation on NGTs in July 2023, and I am supportive of it. Our Department continues to engage at EU level to reach agreement on it.”
“I am fully supportive of any proposal that includes practical and meaningful measures within the regulatory framework to ensure the approval process is as efficient as possible. The Vision for Agriculture and Food communication paper also includes an intention to pursue, in line with international rules, a stronger alignment of production standards applied to imported products regarding pesticides. To progress this aim, the Commission will launch an impact assessment later this year to consider international implications and potential impacts on the EU position. If appropriate, it will propose amendments to the current regulatory framework. Our Department will work closely with the Commission and other member states on any proposed changes to the framework for setting maximum residue limits for imported products.”
“The European Commission indicated in Vision for Agriculture and Food, published on 19 February 2025, that it will carefully consider any further non-approvals of plant-protection product active substances where no alternatives are available. To give farmers more alternatives to chemical pesticides, it intends to make a proposal in the fourth quarter of 2025 to accelerate access for biopesticides to the EU market. A Commission proposal for an omnibus simplification regulation on food and feed safety is also expected in the fourth quarter of 2025. The Commission has indicated that this regulation will include proposals to accelerate access to the EU market for biocontrolled substances and products - biopesticides - and to simplify and clarify the regulatory requirements on plant-protection and biocidal products.”
“This is an important issue and one that deserves our full attention. I am also aware that EU farmers, including those represented by Irish farming organisations, have expressed concern about the rapid withdrawal of chemical plant-protection products from the EU market and the slow pace in approving replacement methods for plant protection. While some of the ideas proposed for farming practice are all well and good, we ultimately need workable solutions. We all want to protect the environment, but we must also protect our food and our crops. To do that, we need access to proper, safe and effective chemicals.”
“We will have to rely on the political representation we have at the time in question. The work in this regard has started and will continue. As Minister of State for forestry, farm safety and horticulture, with responsibility for the national strategy for horticulture, I can fully appreciate the value of maintaining momentum in implementing the recommendations of the Food Vision tillage report. These actions are essential to securing the long-term sustainability of the sector. A key part of that sustainability is ensuring we continue to focus on competitiveness and efficiency to drive a more resilient tillage industry. I am aware that concerns have been raised by Irish farmers about unfair competition from feed imports produced using GM crops and plant-protection products that are no longer authorised in the EU.”
“As Ministers, we will play an active role in negotiating with the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food, the European Parliament's agriculture committee and my fellow EU agriculture Ministers to ensure Irish priorities are reflected in the final agreement. Ireland will play a key role during its Presidency of the Council of the EU, in the second half of 2026, acting as an honest broker in negotiating workable compromises for an ambitious EU budget and a CAP that underpins the competitiveness and economic and social sustainability of Europe's farming and food sectors. I am very glad the Minister, Deputy Heydon, will be to the fore in all the negotiations because he is excellent and will be very capable of taking on this important role at a critical time for the future of farming in Ireland. What is at stake are family farms.”
“Ireland's proposed ring-fenced CAP allocation of €8.1 billion represents a reduction of approximately 24% compared with the current allocation of €10.7 billion. While the Commission has indicated that member states may supplement CAP funding from their wider NRPP envelopes, which totals €12.2 billion in Ireland's case, we are seeking further clarity on how this would operate in practice, particularly with regard to governance and the conditionality rules that would apply. Our priorities for the CAP remain. These are a CAP that is more straightforward for farmers, with an appropriate balance between economic, social and environmental sustainability; flexibility for member states to design schemes that suit national systems; and an adequately funded CAP that continues to underpin farm incomes, food security and rural development.”
“With regard to the Common Agricultural Policy for the period 2028 to 2034, CAP supports are an important part of tillage farm income. It is important that these supports are protected into the future. As the House is aware, the negotiations on the Commission's proposals for the next multi-annual financial framework, which includes the Common Agricultural Policy and Common Fisheries Policy for the period 2028 to 2034, have now commenced. The proposals involve significant changes, which we are studying in detail to better understand the impact on Ireland. The shift from the current two-pillar model to a single national and regional partnership plan, NRPP, represents a fundamental change in the governance of the CAP.”
“I concur with the Minister on the seriousness and importance of the situation. I acknowledge the fact that the Leas-Cheann Comhairle and the Ceann Comhairle are allowing this debate to go forward. I thank the Opposition for being here to debate this matter because this is not a case of us or the Department versus anybody else. We are all trying to ensure that we have a vibrant and strong tillage industry in this country. We want its future to be secure and we all want to work together. Like the Minister, Deputy Heydon, I acknowledge the critical role the tillage sector plays within the wider agricultural economy. I am acutely aware of the challenges our tillage farmers are facing. I re-emphasise the importance of the targeted supports outlined by the Minister in helping to strengthen and sustain the sector.”
“In addition to this proactive engagement, we provide extremely generous grants and premiums for 20 years for farmers and 15 years for non-farmers across a wide range of schemes, positioning forestry as an ideal complementary income stream for any farmer or landowner, with options available to suit all farming types. I am committed to continuing to promote this valuable land use option for farmers and other landowners in every way that I can, and to continue to grow the forestry sector into 2026 and beyond. I hope I will have the Deputy's support in doing so.”
“My Department will therefore have delivered significant growth in 2025 and will continue to build on this success. In 2025 we launched a communications plan promoting the options available to farmers and other landowners through advertising on radio and in the national press, the targeting of information through social media channels and text messages and direct engagement with farmers and landowners through local and national events such as the National Ploughing Championships. We also fund stakeholder organisations, through promotion projects and training, to support the development of forestry sector networks. In 2025 we launched the planting on public lands initiative and are actively engaging with public bodies with land to encourage them to plant. That is an initiative that was not taken before.”
“Forests have an important role to play in mitigating climate change by sequestering and storing greenhouse gases. This can be achieved through the expansion of our forests and the increased use of timber products. In 2020 we planted 2,234 ha, followed by 2,016 ha in 2021, 2,073 ha in 2022, 1,651 ha in 2023 and 1,573 ha in 2024, and so far this year we have planted 2,297 ha. I have personally contacted a large number of those landowners who have valid licence approvals and have not as yet planted, encouraging them to take that next step. I am confident that we will reach nearly 3,000 ha by year-end. I am sure the Deputy will praise me highly when I reach that target and, instead of shouting at me, he will be my biggest advocate and backer to say that I achieved such a thing.”
“From the Taoiseach to the Tánaiste, our senior Minister and everyone else in the House, including the Opposition Deputies, every one of us wants to improve farm safety. If we all work together, we will, I hope, be able to reduce the number of deaths.”
“I confirm that, as I said, there will be an increase in funding for safety this year to €3 million. I have been visiting schools. An agri-aware safety programme is running in our schools. It is excellent. This great work was started by our senior Minister, Deputy Heydon. He took it upon himself to focus on safety for young people, in particular. In the programme for Government, Securing Ireland's Future, the Government has set out its commitment to continuing to prioritise improvements in farm safety, health and well-being through strengthened supports. It places a specific focus on farmers' mental health and well-being, recognising the unique challenges faced by the sector. It also promotes positive mental health and well-being across the farming sector.”
“We must remember that at one time, building sites were not safe places to work but that changed thanks to the work of the HSA and stricter regulations. We all might have given out about that at times when we were adapting, but we grew into it. Our building sites have become far safer places. We want to do the same for our farmyards, farm machinery and farms in general. If we can model our farms on the way building sites changed, we will reduce the deaths and the non-fatal accidents.”
“As I said at the beginning, this Government considers farm safety of the utmost importance. I highlight that farm safety continues to be one of the most critical issues that need to be addressed on farms today. Statistics show that over the past decade, farm incidences account for almost 40% of all workplace fatalities, while accounting for only 6.1% of the working population. In addition, there are approximately 4,500 non-fatal incidents each year on Irish farms, some of which result in life-changing injuries. Very sadly, 16 farm fatalities have been confirmed this year. There has also been one in the marine and aquaculture sector. We are fighting a battle. The Deputy is right to raise the issue. Everyone, on all sides of the House, wants our farms to become what building sites became.”
“The additional farm safety investments are eligible for both TAMS and the accelerated capital allowances. This year, my Department partnered with the Health and Safety Authority to deliver targeted media campaigns focusing on farm safety risks due to livestock and farmer fatigue. In addition, the HSA's guidance on managing fatigue with farm work was included in the 2025 BISS packs distributed to over 125,000 farmers. The increased funding in 2026 will enable me to continue to deliver initiatives to support the safety, health and well-being of farmers, and everyone working and living on farms.”
“The TAMS 3 farm safety capital investment scheme continues to provide grant aid for a wide range of farm safety related investments. Health and safety guidelines are included in all building specifications for the construction of agricultural buildings and structures. All TAMS applicants are required to complete a half-day of farm safety training. Farmer health and safety training is also included in other Department schemes, such as the suckler carbon efficiency programme, the ACRES training scheme and the knowledge transfer programme. The accelerated capital allowances scheme was expanded in budget 2025 to cover a broader range of farm safety investments in addition to the existing range of eligible farm safety equipment and adaptive equipment for farmers with disabilities.”
“I thank Deputy McCarthy. Farm safety, health and well-being is a priority for this Government. The Department is implementing a range of initiatives this year on farm safety, utilising dedicated funding of €2.5 million secured in budget 2025. I was pleased to secure an increase in this dedicated funding for farm safety, health and well-being to €3 million in budget 2026. In relation to 2025 funding, I have approved funding for 40 projects following an open call for farm safety, health and well-being projects earlier this year. More recently, we announced contracts for the delivery of children’s and young person’s farm safety awareness initiatives. A number of key schemes under the CAP strategic plan also ensure a focus on farm safety.”
“I am also very glad with regard to farm safety. Farm safety is very important to all of us and we have an additional 17% of funding which will bring us to €3 million. This Government takes very seriously the issue of farm accidents and farm deaths. I am very glad to be able to support an AgriAware scheme for schools. We have people going out to marts dealing with farmers, not just on their physical health but also their mental health, and having a little chat with them. A lot of our farmers are working predominantly alone. It can be a lonesome way of life with hard work and hard living. With those schemes, through the IFA and other organisations, we are outreaching to farmers, meeting them and taking them through health checks. We have additional funding in this budget. There are an awful lot of positive aspects to this budget.”
“I am after instilling confidence into forestry, a thing that not one of the Deputies opposite would probably know anything about. I am very glad that I have that job of work done. There is a confidence in the sector now.”
“With regard to licensing, the Leas Cheann-Comhairle knows there was an issue, problem and delay before with licensing. I am sure everybody in this House will be delighted to know that since Kerry won the All-Ireland, the Department's office in Wexford has issued 400 licences for thinning and clear felling of trees. We have completely turned around the whole licensing structure. You would nearly want a tractor and trailer every week to draw the licences out of Wexford because we are so successful.”
“In my own section, forestry is going to have a proper reconstitution scheme, which I am glad we were in a position to announce today. That will ensure a reconstitution scheme for the people who were affected - over 12,000 ha in private ownership - so they can use their land again and grow trees. I am very glad we were able to do that while also taking on the very serious issue of TB eradication. It is so important for our sheep, tillage and cattle men to know the supports and the schemes that were fully funded before will have the same level of funding again.”
“Thank you. With regard to the €2.3 billion we have for agriculture, we have a very important to job to do in agriculture in that TB is posing a grave threat to Ireland at present. I am so glad we have ensured we will have proper funding in place to eradicate TB and to arrest those figures and bring them down. At the same time, we are not in any way endangering or taking money away from other very important programmes we have, such as TAMS, ACRES and the support for the tillage men. We have managed to fund those properly, and at the same time properly fund, for example-----”
“I was not one of those over there who at one time was saying we were not going far enough quickly enough. I remember people over there saying that with regard to carbon taxes but they hate being reminded about that.”
“If you were to listen to those people putting up things last night on YouTube, you would swear to God there was a vote. There was not. There was a vote a number of years ago. There will be no more votes until 2030, so the people who voted that way-----”
“With regard to the VAT reduction, this is something that is most welcome in the tourism capital of the western world, which is County Kerry. We want to see that being implemented. I will be very frank and say that I would rather have seen it come into force next March rather than July, but that is an issue we will deal with again. However, when it comes to misinformation, I am very glad a man mentioned something there. The one thing I will do in life and in politics is that I will go in straight lines. I saw a person giving the impression there was a vote here last night. There were five votes here last night; the Deputy was here for them. All Deputies were here for them. There was no vote, in any shape or form, on carbon tax.”
“I am very glad to stand up here and support this budget. I do so on the following grounds. With regard to the VAT reduction for the hospitality sector and hairdressers, I have heard a lot of criticism by people to the effect that this is a budget for companies like McDonald's and that the VAT reduction is for them. I remind people that in the county I represent, many of our takeaway businesses and many of those fast food outlets might be under a franchise of a larger group but they are family businesses. I heard a Deputy from across these benches this morning describe it on Radio Kerry as a cod of a budget. Now, it did not exactly take an awful lot of in-depth knowledge to summarise the whole budget as a cod. I will I go through the issues that are not a cod and that are not a joke-----”
“Consider what the hosting of the Ryder Cup in 2027 will mean to us. Ireland can host massive events. I must contradict in a friendly way my colleague across the floor who said we should not spend money on horses and dogs. I say to him we must not neglect the horses and dogs. People in Kerry want to keep the dogs and horses running and we want to keep the young people in sport. We definitely must not forget dogs and horses because they are very important. They are part of the heartbeat of Ireland as well, particularly rural Ireland. I thank the Minister of State again for the work he is doing.”
“It is a state-of-the-art project and it is disability inclusive. A total of 15 clubs will benefit from that funding, from basketball to judo to everything else in the middle. One must spend money to make money. With the major events funding, we see the impact of the American National Football League, NFL, game last weekend. It involved €10 million of State expenditure but the game was watched by more than 7.9 million people and tens of thousands came here to attend it. The positive spin-off from that type of investment when it comes to sport means the funding is like fertiliser. If we do not spread it, there will be no growth. Grass cannot be grown without fertiliser and we cannot grow our rural communities and keep people living there unless we invest in them. I thank the Minister of State so much for the work he is doing.”
“I most sincerely thank the Minister of State, Deputy McConalogue, and his Department for the excellent work they are doing in distributing this very important money. The positive effects of the funding on the sporting landscape throughout the country are extremely important. The same applies to the large-scale sport infrastructure fund and the major events programme. The sports capital grants are delivered to sporting clubs of all types in all parts of the country, including rural Ireland. Those clubs are the heartbeat of our countryside. I have seen at first hand the positive effects this funding has had on my county of Kerry. With regard to the LSSIF funding, I will highlight one project. The Department has put more than €2 million into the Derreen project in Killarney, which the Minister of State has visited.”
“Ireland is extremely concerned about the escalation of the Israeli offensive in Gaza, which will only lead to more bloodshed, loss of life, starvation and even greater distance from any hope of peace. The famine review committee of the integrated food security classification phase system has determined that a famine is occurring in Gaza and is projected to spread further across the strip. This is an entirely man-made famine and must be halted and reversed. Ireland calls on Israel to completely and immediately lift its blockade and allow the full resumption of humanitarian aid into and throughout Gaza.”
“Ireland welcomes the ongoing efforts to end the war in Gaza, including those of the US even though it should be doing more. Progress is being made to secure an agreement that brings an end to the violence in Gaza, secures the release of the hostages held by Hamas and ensures that vital humanitarian aid gets to Gaza. In the hope that the US efforts can lead to a ceasefire and lay the ground for a lasting peace, Hamas needs to seize the opportunity to lay down its arms and release all of the hostages. The Middle East was a core priority for Ireland at the high-level UN meeting in New York last week, in particular the implementation of the two-state solution between Israel and Palestine. The humanitarian situation in Gaza has never been worse and continues to significantly deteriorate.”
“We all want to be sure that we are doing everything we can as quickly as possible and ensuring that other like-minded people throughout the world work together. Of course, my thoughts and prayers are very much with the people on the flotilla. We want them to be successful. As well as the practical success, the image of what they are trying to do being portrayed around the world is important, along with their safety and protection. I really believe that they should be successful in their mission. All of us on all sides of the House are praying for all of those good people, who are putting themselves in harm's way for what is probably the most important issue that will ever come before us as parliamentarians in our lifetimes. Please God we will never again live to see a time like this.”
“The people who are surviving are traumatised. Deputy Hearne put a very thought-provoking image in our heads when he spoke so excellently, but we also need to consider the children who are surviving, who will live the rest of their lives with the horror of what they have see. Every one of us can remember our early childhood, including the good and bad things that happened. The bad things might have been something as innocent as losing a football match. That pales in comparison to the horror of what these children have survived and have to live with and the images they have seen. It is frightening beyond belief. It is right for it to be debated in this House. Of course every one of us is frustrated.”
“I would be the first person to say larger institutions than ours are not playing their full role in this. It is not abdicating responsibility, because all of us in every country are responsible. All normal and right-thinking people would be outraged at the horror of seeing innocent adults and children, in particular, being killed. Deputy Hearne is dead right to talk about children and about fathers carrying their dead or severely injured children. It is shocking and upsetting. It should not be the case in this House that it is us on one side and the Opposition on the other on this issue. We all want the same thing. All we want is for the killing to stop. We want the humanitarian aid to get through and the blockades to be removed. We want recognition that these people are entitled to live in peace, security and harmony.”
“I too want to compliment all of the people who contributed here today. We in this House have to remember that whether we are in opposition or the people in government, we all have the one aim and ambition. We never thought that in our lifetimes we would witness what is happening today. The advent of modern communication methods mean we can see these horrors unfolding before our eyes. We did not ever think we would see this. It is a genocide and it is happening on the watch of all of us. Everybody is right - we are all outraged and we want action - but I believe this Government, led by our Taoiseach, Tánaiste and others, is acting. For example, high-level talks took place in America last week. It was the priority of the Government to try to ensure that we would all come together, all over the world.”
“I believe in the quality of our way of farming and the way we carry on our farming practices. I am passionate about that. In the past every one of us had practices we would not be proud of today, for example, our methods of storing and spreading slurry and of outwintering cattle. Every one of us did it. We were up to that height in gutter. Where was the water and seepage going? That is the way we were but look at the way we are now. Now farmers can go out at night, turn on a light and feed their cattle in a pair of shoes like the ones I am wearing. We have come on an awful lot in comparison with the way we were, especially the few of us who might have grey hair or no hair. We remember what it was like. We are all trying to achieve the same thing. I thank the Senator for what I would call a timely debate on this matter.”
“This morning I met with IFA leadership who have young farmers and people who are interested in agriculture for a multitude of reasons. They were in Agriculture House. They realise, as we all do, the importance of what is happening in Europe today. We discussed all of these issues. I have nothing but the utmost confidence in the reliability and wherewithal of the Minister to lead us on this matter. The Taoiseach, Tánaiste and everybody from there down across all parties realise the importance of what this will mean in the future. The Senator said it in jest but it is very important that this House and every one of its Member is seen to be uniting behind this effort. We are on the head of a pin. We must focus our efforts on getting this derogation. It will mean so much in the future. Do we have a good case?”
“The programme for Government states that the Government will do everything in its power to make the case at EU level to secure retention of the derogation. The Government continues to work intensively on this. Although this will be a challenging process, the Government remains fully committed to working with farmers and the broader industry to develop the best case possible for the renewal of the derogation from 1 January, 2026. It is critically important that we all get behind the twin objectives of improving water quality and securing Ireland’s next derogation.”
“The Taoiseach raised the importance of our derogation with the EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The Minister, Deputy Heydon has also discussed the matter with Commissioner Roswall and is meeting with the Commissioner today in Brussels to advance the case for renewal, as I already stated. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is in ongoing contact with its commission and member state counterparts in Brussels, most recently making the case for the renewal at the EU nitrates committee on Friday last. On Monday, 15 September, the Minister welcomed the delegation of senior commission officials to Ireland to discuss the renewal and that team visited a dairy farm to see the work under way to protect water quality.”
“Almost 54,000 farmers are participating in the agri-climate rural environmental scheme, ACRES, which includes water protection quality and using the principle of the right measure in the right place. The Minister of State, Deputy John Cummins has also made significant progress towards the introduction of a targeted exemption threshold for stand-alone manure storage under the exempted development regulations. This will be in place in the coming weeks. This is also very significant. There have been a number of significant developments in securing an extension of Ireland’s derogation and it is important to update the Seanad accordingly. First, a Cabinet committee on water quality chaired by an Taoiseach was established in March to co-ordinate efforts to secure the derogation.”
“For example, the Farming for Water European Innovation Partnership, which has a budget of €60 million and which commenced last year, provides financial support for specific targeted actions. To date, more than 4,200 farmers have applied for this support. Our aim is to support 15,000 farmers by 2029, which is very significant. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is also providing TAMS grant support for capital investments in low-emissions slurry spreading equipment and manure storage. Since 2015, a total of more than €138 million has been paid to support significant investments in family farms in manure storage and low-emissions slurry spreading technology.”
“Maintaining the derogation is critical not only for the economic sustainability of farm enterprises currently availing of it but also for the broader rural economy. Ultimately, the rules on nitrates are about protecting water quality. Led by Government, there is unprecedented engagement across the entire agrifood sector to protect our water quality. This work will continue as farmers, the agrifood processing industry and the Government share a common objective and commitment. In addition, we will have to demonstrate that we are doing what is necessary to protect valuable habitats under the habitats directive. In many cases, the Government is providing financial and other supports for farmers going beyond regulatory requirements to improve water quality.”
“I thank the Senator for raising this very important matter. On behalf of the Minister, Deputy Heydon, I thank her for allowing us to discuss the importance of the nitrates derogation. As the Senator has correctly said, the Minister is in Brussels today to meet with Commissioner Roswall, who has responsibility for the environment, on this very matter, so the Senator's timing is brilliant. Securing an extension of Ireland's derogation remains a key Government priority. Irish agriculture is different from farming on the Continent. Our outdoor system of livestock farming, coupled with the high yielding crop of grass, high rainfall and a long growing season, is central to our justification for the derogation we so desperately need.”
“There is money being spent on housing and of course, we must address issues like infrastructure. With regard to Irish Water, we have to look after our small towns and villages that need extensions to sewerage schemes. We need extra provision of portable water for these towns and villages so they can be areas where people can come along and put in a planning application. We need to work together. This is why what the Government is doing here is so important. I said at the beginning, where judicial reviews are taking place, and where we are being robbed of time, the Minister will be able to help in that situation. That is what I call sound, sensible work. Whether people want to recognise the Minister's work on this or not, I can tell him I do because I appreciate what he is doing and the way his head is thinking.”
“They may not realise there is a housing crisis and do not have to face the people or go to clinics and hear young people say, "I got my planning from my local authority. I was taken to An Bord Pleanála and an inspector came down here, agreed with the local authority, and two other geniuses up in Dublin said "No"." That is what is happening. These geniuses in An Bord Pleanála take it upon themselves that the only word they seem to know is "No". Maybe they could be told "Yes" is also an option and something they could say. If they have a home themselves, they might think of the people who do not and of those who have spent a fortune on their planning application. It is important that common sense prevails. There is a housing crisis and I am grateful it is the number one priority for this Government.”
“I am glad the Taoiseach recognises that the involvement of the private sector is very important in taking care of the future housing needs because, as a State, we will not be able to do it all and we need those big developers. We need those small developers. We also need medium-sized developers. However, when their work is going before the board and these people, in their infinite wisdom, take it upon themselves to dash those hopes and dreams and say "No", not only are they saying "No" to that person but they are saying "No" to everything in that report. They are going against their own inspector. I ask the Minister to use his influence to tell these people common sense will have to prevail.”