It is “disingenuous” of the Social, Economic, Environmental Forestry Association (SEEFA) to accuse the Department of Agriculture of withholding information on the discussions it is having with the European Commission regarding Ireland’s forestry programme, Minister Pippa Hackett has warned.
“It would be inappropriate for officials to discuss the details of these negotiations as they are ongoing and any suggestion that information is being withheld is disingenuous,” she said.
Responding to SEEFA’s call for her resignation over the ongoing deadlock between the Department and the Commission, Minister Hackett insisted she and her officials are “fully committed to delivering an ambitious forestry programme as soon as possible”.
The minister described the Department’s engagement with the Commission as “intensive” and insisted that forestry is a “key policy under the Climate Action Plan”.
Frustration
Earlier on Monday, SEEFA, the representative body for the private forestry sector in Ireland, accused Minister Hackett of “negligence" and a "dereliction of duty” in the manner in which she has managed Ireland’s application for EU clearance for the new forestry programme.
The group called for the resignation of Senator Hackett as Minister of State with responsibility for forestry and, overall, it was highly critical of the performance of the Department’s forestry service.
Ireland's forestry programme was launched last November, but it has not yet been approved by the European Commission. \ Claire Nash
The comments come following the appearance of the Department’s forestry officials before the Oireachtas agriculture committee last week, where the ongoing deadlock over the green-lighting of Ireland’s forestry programme, launched seven months ago, was revealed.
Comments
“SEEFA is of the opinion that the sector has been misled in relation to the proposed new forestry scheme, to the detriment of its members who continued to invest in their businesses on the well-founded assumption that the new scheme would be operational from January 2023,” SEEFA stated.
“This misinformation, together with the failure to ensure that the scheme was implemented by the extended deadline of January 2023, can only be regarded as negligence and a dereliction of duty by Senator Hackett.
"It is for this reason that SEEFA now calls for Senator Hackett’s resignation as a matter of urgency,” the private forestry body insisted.
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Private forestry sector body SEEFA calls on Minister Hackett to resign
Commission and Department still in deadlock over forestry programme
It is “disingenuous” of the Social, Economic, Environmental Forestry Association (SEEFA) to accuse the Department of Agriculture of withholding information on the discussions it is having with the European Commission regarding Ireland’s forestry programme, Minister Pippa Hackett has warned.
“It would be inappropriate for officials to discuss the details of these negotiations as they are ongoing and any suggestion that information is being withheld is disingenuous,” she said.
Responding to SEEFA’s call for her resignation over the ongoing deadlock between the Department and the Commission, Minister Hackett insisted she and her officials are “fully committed to delivering an ambitious forestry programme as soon as possible”.
The minister described the Department’s engagement with the Commission as “intensive” and insisted that forestry is a “key policy under the Climate Action Plan”.
Frustration
Earlier on Monday, SEEFA, the representative body for the private forestry sector in Ireland, accused Minister Hackett of “negligence" and a "dereliction of duty” in the manner in which she has managed Ireland’s application for EU clearance for the new forestry programme.
The group called for the resignation of Senator Hackett as Minister of State with responsibility for forestry and, overall, it was highly critical of the performance of the Department’s forestry service.
Ireland's forestry programme was launched last November, but it has not yet been approved by the European Commission. \ Claire Nash
The comments come following the appearance of the Department’s forestry officials before the Oireachtas agriculture committee last week, where the ongoing deadlock over the green-lighting of Ireland’s forestry programme, launched seven months ago, was revealed.
Comments
“SEEFA is of the opinion that the sector has been misled in relation to the proposed new forestry scheme, to the detriment of its members who continued to invest in their businesses on the well-founded assumption that the new scheme would be operational from January 2023,” SEEFA stated.
“This misinformation, together with the failure to ensure that the scheme was implemented by the extended deadline of January 2023, can only be regarded as negligence and a dereliction of duty by Senator Hackett.
"It is for this reason that SEEFA now calls for Senator Hackett’s resignation as a matter of urgency,” the private forestry body insisted.
Read more
Private forestry sector body SEEFA calls on Minister Hackett to resign
Commission and Department still in deadlock over forestry programme
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