The Government buying land for the purpose of rewilding is preventing farmers purchasing ground and also flies in the face of the homelessness crisis, the Irish Natural and Hill Farmers’ Association (INHFA) has said.

INHFA president Vincent Roddy said his organisation has taken issue with the Department of Housing purchasing land to increase the size and number of national parks in the midst of a housing crisis.

“It is absolutely mind boggling that we have people inside the Department of Housing actively looking to purchase farmland for rewilding, while over 15,000 people remain homeless, including 4,600 children,” he said.

Roddy added that considering the extent of the problem, the Government and Department of Housing should focus on using new and existing State land to build houses.

Competing with farmers

The State is now going up against farmers for land, Roddy stated, which is impacting generational renewal in farming and rural communities in general.

“We are now seeing the State actively compete against farmers in the purchasing of land, which is having a detrimental effect on access to land, especially for young farmers, while also undermining economic activity in these communities.

“This policy is also at variance with Article 45/2/v of our constitution that outlines the need to retain as many families as is economically practicable on the land,” he said.

The INHFA president pointed out the need for an immediate reassessment of the current policy in this regard.

“Through active engagement with farmers, we can deliver much better outcomes in terms of economic and environmental sustainability, while ensuring there is more funding available to address the housing crisis,” he added.