I have raised the following issue a number of times in the House. It concerns the deep crisis facing our forestry sector. Almost a year ago, a forestry Bill was introduced by the Minister of State, Senator Hackett, in which she pledged to address the ongoing difficulties and backlog in respect of licences. Almost a year later, 6,000 licences are caught up in the backlog. It is unacceptable. Earlier this week, we met members of the IFA and all the stakeholders involved in forestry. Yet again, they are pleading with this Government to bring forward emergency legislation to address this issue once and for all and protect the 10,000 jobs that are at risk. This Government is well able to bring forward emergency legislation at the drop of a hat when it so wishes. The situation in forestry is putting livelihoods at risk. Forestry is very important in my constituency of Laois-Offaly. Many people are involved in it in terms of the sawmills, hauliers, foresters and farmers planting. It is an ongoing crisis and we need emergency legislation for both forestry and horticulture, where another 17,000 jobs are in jeopardy. What is very noticeable about this Government is that it seems to be totally disconnected from the reality, from the lives and from the hardship faced by working people. We need protections for these livelihoods yet the Government is dragging its feet.

From speaking to the real experts, I know there are lots of measures that could be brought forward. That is the mistake the Government is making. It does not speak to the people on the ground and consult with the real experts - the stakeholders. They are the people with the knowledge. From speaking to those stakeholders, it has been brought to my attention that many improvements could be made in addition to emergency legislation such as leaving out the thinning and management aspects involved in the process, which makes the process more cumbersome and more bureaucratic than it needs to be. We know there are issues in terms of the changes to appropriate assessment but there are other jurisdictions that do not face the issues and crisis we face. We are importing timber and the cost of building materials and building new homes have increased considerably. This is unacceptable. Everybody is paying the price for the Government's lack of action. We need urgent action. Once again, I ask the Government to bring forward the emergency legislation for the forestry and horticulture sectors where up to 27,000 jobs could be protected, which I think is significant.

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue, about which she feels very sincerely. I know her passion for this issue, which she has raised previously. However, her comment about the Government was a bit unfair. We live in the same country as her, get elected by the same people as she does and talk to people on the ground every day just like she does. It is unfair to make comments about other people in this House in that way. We are all elected and we are only elected precisely because we engage with our constituents and talk to people on the ground all the time. That comment was very unfair.

It is not true.

The Government is very aware that there are serious issues with the licensing of forestry operations that are having a negative impact on the sector. This is as a result of necessary changes to the appropriate assessment procedure due to the European Court of Justice and Irish rulings relating to the protection of Natura sites. We are dealing with these issues robustly and a number of urgent steps have been taken to resolve them. These include the implementation of the Mackinnon report, which is well underway through Project Woodland. The project board and working groups have been meeting regularly since early March while a project manager and a business analyst have also been engaged. There is significant investment in resources with more ecologists, forestry inspectors and additional administrative staff assigned to licensing. We saw improvements in licensing output during the first half of this year. June was the highest month to date. Over 1,770 licences have been issued so far this year. This is a 29% increase on the same period last year. While accepting that significant further gains are needed, we are at last moving in the right direction. The average output for the past seven weeks alone is 95 licences per week with farmers being the largest beneficiaries of this receiving 75% of licences. The Department received just over 3,000 applications to date this year. This includes a batch application for 1,800 new applications from Coillte to cover its output for the next two years.

Of course, licence output is only one measure of performance. The more realistic metric is the volume of material licensed, which is what really matters to the sector. In this regard, felling volumes are 77% higher than at the same point last year, the area for afforestation is 19% higher, roads licensed are 121%, Coillte's 2021 felling programme is fully licensed and it is working with the Department to ensure the availability of this supply to the market.

I made the point, which was factual, that this Government is disconnected. I have spoken to supporters of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil and I am genuinely and honestly telling the Tánaiste that there is a serious level of disconnect and the Government is not reaching out to the stakeholders and listening to the experts. It is all very well and good having a tokenistic meeting but following through on this and the commitments on the programme for Government is another matter. The Government is missing its own climate action targets. It has committed to planting 8,000 hectares annually. It is missing its own targets. I am hearing from constituents. I represent everybody in the constituency. Like the Tánaiste, I was elected but unlike him, I listen to the people on the ground all the time and I carry through on my commitments.

It is very obvious that this Government cannot see the wood for the trees. Some 27,000 jobs in horticulture and forestry are at stake. This matter could be resolved easily if the Government had the political will to do so and if it listened to its own supporters, it would be done. However, it is because rural Ireland is neglected all of the time and is not top of the agenda for the Government. This neglect of rural Ireland is the real issue.

We could all engage in cheap shots in this House.

It is not. It is true. I am telling it like it is.

As I say, we can all engage in cheap shots in this House and question each other's motivation. I could point out that this morning, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine and the Minister of State, Deputy Heydon, were here for an hour and a half and took questions on any issue people raised such as agriculture, farming, fishing and forestry yet not a single Rural Independent Group Deputy turned up to ask those Ministers any questions. I could say that this-----