IFA president Tim Cullinan said that the refusal of An Taisce to accept planning decisions already made in relation to the Glanbia cheese plant in Kilkenny was a subversion of the planning process

“An Taisce has a role in the planning system. In taking up that role, they implicitly accept the process as robust, fair and independent.

“Running away with the football because they lost the match does not show much maturity,” he said.

Process

He pointed out that the process had now been in front of Kilkenny County Council, An Bord Pleanála and the High Court and at each stage, the process had found in favour of Glanbia.

“As the most exposed sector in the country, it’s reckless of any organisation to obstruct a valid initiative that is designed to safeguard the livelihoods of farm families and the rural economy,” he said.

...they have a lot of new members, but they have not told us how many members they actually have

Cullinan urged people to read the High Court judgement for themselves.

“Representatives of An Taisce have been telling us that they have a lot of new members, but they have not told us how many members they actually have.

“They have refused to say why their new constitution has excluded their local groups from their planning appeals decisions, an they will not say who decided to appeal the planning decision for the third time,” he said.

“In recent days, one of their officers said their legal team was operating on a ‘no-foal no-fee’ basis.

“This suggests that An Taisce will exhaust the legal system to block the project without incurring any cost. This is highly irresponsible and a blatant abuse of the planning system.”