The Forestry (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2020 was passed by a Dáil vote on Wednesday night (30th September) following two days of debate in the Dáil, and its passage through the Seanad last week. The legislation is designed to help to improve the current process of appeals for tree-felling licences.
Fórsa had said the bill needed to be passed into law as a matter of urgency because the current legislation has led to a crippling backlog of appeals against licences, which the union has warned puts up to 12,000 jobs at risk.
At almost 700, the number of forestry appeals received by the Forestry Appeals Committee (FAC) so far in 2020 is almost three times the amount received in 2017 and 2018 combined.
Responding to Cabinet’s approval of the bill last week, Fórsa official Johnny Fox said it was reasonable to have an appeals process, but the current system was flawed to the extent of undermining the entire industry.
“We’ve argued that the Government needs to put in place the necessary resources for the Forestry Appeals Commission (FAC) to process all the remaining appeals within the next three months. Without action the industry faces a catastrophic blow.
“The new legislation is welcome and we’re glad to see the legislation passed by the Oireachtas within the timeframe outlined by the minister of state. Her confirmation that the capacity of the FAC is to be increased is also welcome, as those additional resources are badly needed to clear the existing backlog,” he said.
Fórsa made a number of proposals on the need to amend the legislation and deploy additional resources in a submission as part of the public consultation on the draft bill.
During last week’s Seanad debate the minister said she could not give a precise timeline for how quick the licensing system would be, once the bill is passed. But she was hopeful it would bring about a “significant improvement” in the efficiency of appeals.
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