Many farmers are stuck in the forestry felling licence backlog, with some people waiting two years and more. Will this Government now take urgent action to clear the backlog? Genuine applicants from west Cork have been caught up in this delay for months. One person has his forestry rotting in the ground due to the impact of a storm and it has not been possible to get a felling licence. Some 500 jobs in GP Wood in Enniskeane are hanging in the balance because of this debacle. There was no indication at the meeting of the agriculture committee yesterday of a solution to this problem being near at hand. I call on this Government to grant an amnesty on the granting of applications in the system for more than four months. A forestry felling licence should be automatically granted in those cases, and it would go a long way in clearing the backlog. Will the Taoiseach's Government support this amnesty?

Governments are constrained by the law and by the courts. This Government has taken urgent action and we have passed an Act in this regard. We know there have been serial objections to every felling licence application. I think that is wrong and inappropriate and also, in its own way, brings the planning processes into disrepute. The forestry industry is an important one which creates thousands of jobs and is important for housing and construction. The new Act, therefore, will improve the functioning of the forestry appeals committee. I will talk to the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy McConalogue, and see how we can ensure we accelerate the alleviation of the backlog.