Ireland is doing everything it can within its diplomatic and political capacities, particularly, as I said earlier, in multilateral forums such as the United Nations Security Council, where we have consistently raised these issues. Our position was most recently reiterated on 19 December at the meeting of the UN Security Council which focused on the issue of Israeli settlements, and we were key to getting that on the agenda. Our position is very clear: fundamentally, we believe in the two-state solution, as this Ho…

Is é mo thuairim agus is é an taithí atá agam ó bheith ag obair leis an Aire, an Teachta Donohoe, ná gur fearr ionraic macánta atá ann. Déanann sé a dhícheall gach aon lá ar son na tíre. Oibríonn sé ar son mhuintir na tíre go macánta. Caithfidh mé é sin a rá. Is é sin an taithí atá agam féin agus mé ag obair leis an Aire, an Teachta Donohoe, ar feadh dhá bhliain go leith. Caithfidh mé é sin a chur os comhair na Dála. First, I am essentially saying that from working with the Minister in Government over the past two …

That has been my experience in my engagement with him. He has the country’s interests at heart in the discharge of his duties as a Minister. Second, I offer the viewpoint that in a legitimate controversy and issue of this kind we need balance and perspective in how we approach these issues. I make that point in terms of the issue at stake here. It is essential that Members across the House adhere to the regulations and rules governing political donations, electoral spending and the various rules the House has creat…

I merely say that because people can legitimately complain and we then have to weigh up who ultimately does the investigation in terms of the detail of a complaint. There is a danger. I fully subscribe to the idea of accountability to the House. Perhaps in the aftermath of the SIPO investigation, that accountability can be dealt with in more detail-----

-----but there is a problem with how I determine how Members want to proceed.

First of all, the Minister spoke to me on Sunday and outlined what had transpired. He gave an account and apologised to me for the omission and the mistake he had made in respect of this. He did raise those issues with me. He has also offered to come before the House again at the earliest opportunity in respect of the issues the Deputy raised. I am struck by the language the Deputy used in questioning me. He used the term "concocted". That is a very partisan comment. He is entitled to make that comment but it is a …

I thank Deputy Cairns for raising what is a very important issue. The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy McConalogue, and the Minister of State, Senator Hackett, are meeting Coillte today, and they will discuss Coillte's role in the Irish Strategic Forestry Fund and how Coillte should work closely with farmers and local contractors to achieve positive outcomes for the Irish forestry sector and for Irish farm families. They will also discuss other models, and I think other models need to be pursue…

The Government does not run Coillte. Coillte is a separate-----

Yes, it is a semi-State, but with a mandate underpinned by legislation.

We can change that mandate but that is the mandate. The Government does not run every semi-State organisation and if it did there would be problems. The first people in the House complaining about Government interference in semi-States, and correctly too, would be, guess who? The Opposition. That is an ongoing challenge. As to the basic point, farmers will benefit the most from the forestry programme and from the increase in premium. Farmers will benefit the most-----

-----and there will be no privatisation of public land. I have made that clear in my original statement. There will be no privatisation of public land. That is the point. In fact, I would favour more State acquisition of land for forestry. That is the position the leaders of the Government have discussed with the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Again, we have to be careful of state aid compliance in how we do all of that and that is the issue in terms of whatever we do. The more fundamental point, ho…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. The first point I make is that we have international obligations under international law. What has distinguished Ireland on the global stage is the fact that we are a rules-based country that believes in the international rule of law and that we adhere to that. One aspect of that is the Geneva Convention and European laws in respect of the treatment of those who seek asylum. Therefore, there is a legal obligation on us in respect of people fleeing war, starvation, or polit…

We should also acknowledge the support, goodwill and solidarity of many communities the length and breadth of the country, including in Kerry, displayed towards those who have sought shelter on our shores, particularly to those fleeing the war in Ukraine. There was a strong response in Killarney, for example, when there was an attempt to move Ukrainians out of Killarney. People at the grass roots spoke very strongly in response-----

-----and that occasioned a change in direction, which I thought reflected the basic humanity of people in our communities. I understand the challenges, and the Government does as well, in terms of tourism and the pressure on accommodation. That is why a €50 million fund has been established and will be allocated to communities that have taken in a lot of migrants and asylum seekers, and also Ukrainians. That is a community-based fund, which is to recognise the lengths to which communities have gone to facilitate th…

Putin is gambling on this exact debate happening in every parliament across the European Union. That is what he wants. I know Deputy Healy-Rae does not mean it that way. I accept his bona fides in terms of the pressures in his constituency, but essentially that is what Putin wants. Europe needs to hold its nerve for the next 12 months because what Putin is doing is attacking the values of democracy and the rule of law and those basic principles must win out in the end.

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue, along with Deputy Cairns, because it is an important one. The Government's policy, as the Deputy states, is to increase afforestation from the current level of 11%, or 808,848 ha, to 18% by 2050. This will require an additional 450,000 ha of new forests by 2050. Coillte, in its strategic vision, has committed to enabling 100,000 ha of new forests by 2050, to create a carbon sink of approximately 18 million tonnes of CO2. Half of these forests will be native woodlands. The …

The more fundamental part of the Government's strategy is the premiums and the large increase in that regard, which is a very significant incentive for farmers to use more of their land for afforestation.

The size of the fund will be about €200 million. The fund aims ultimately to own a total of 12,000 ha of forest. This is what I have been informed. This equates to roughly 1.5% of our total existing forest estate. Of those 12,000 ha of forests, roughly 3,500 ha will be new forests, which the fund hopes to plant over the next five years. That is an average of 700 ha of new forests per annum for each of the next five years, out of an existing annual target of 8,000 ha per annum. The remainder of the 12,000 ha purchas…

My understanding is that the Minister has offered to come before the House at the earliest opportunity.

There is no massive sale of land by Coillte.