2026-01-22

Under Standing Order 38A, I now call Deputy Carol Nolan.

For many years, we have seen reports of people in rural Ireland living in absolute fear due to an upsurge in trespassing on farmland by roaming gangs and those who are indifferent to private property rights. Every year, public meetings are held by farming organisations and every year, farmers and community members say the powers at the disposal of An Garda Síochána and landowners alike are deeply insufficient to address the nature of the problem. An Garda Síochána and landowners need our help, collectively as TDs, Ministers and Senators. We need to ensure there are tougher laws and legislative change. When I talk about trespassing, I am not talking about people who accidentally enter a property or come into a field, accidentally trespass and politely leave without causing any damage or intimidation. I am not talking about those cases. I am talking about the worrying rise in deliberate and malicious cases of trespass incidents linked to illegal hunting such as lurching, gangs with dogs, physical threats, intimidation and damage to fences and vehicles. Farmers have routinely reported fears for personal safety. Many of them have called for a dedicated Garda rural crime unit, similar to those in Northern Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales, to co-ordinate patrols and intelligence. I commend the IFA, which is very vocal on this issue and has put forward that solution, which I support. In order to be constructive and to address this issue directly, after speaking with farmers and farm organisations, I brought forward the Criminal Justice (Trespass on Land) Bill 2025 last October. I believe this very short Bill could have a significant impact by introducing a greater level of legal clarity for farmers and landowners as well. This Bill would significantly expand the scope of the physical area captured within the law of trespass, capturing not just the land on which the farm buildings and curtilage of the buildings are situated but all the farm and agricultural land. The important thing I want to raise today is that the plague of farm trespassing has to be dealt with urgently and effectively because it is causing much distress to farmers. We need immediate reform of the existing law of trespass. The time for tea and sympathy being offered to traumatised farm families is over. I ask the Government if it will commit to reforming the law of trespass as it pertains to agricultural land and farmland in particular, and if Government will commit to doing that during this Dáil term so that farming and rural families can feel more secure from the criminal threat that has impacted them for years.

The Deputy should conclude.

I commend my PA, David Mullins, and the OPLA, which was very helpful and encouraged me to bring forward the Bill I mentioned. That Bill is available as a template if the Government wishes to use it. I will play my part and I am happy to work with every party and none.

I thank Deputy Nolan for raising this issue and for the constructive way in which she has gone about it. It is a serious issue. I represent and have lived in County Wicklow all my life. I remember vividly the incident in 2023 when a farmer, Pat Dunne, was beaten up on his own land. I remember meeting with the IFA at Wicklow level and national level. This is a real issue that farmers are grappling with on a constant basis. Yes, there is a balance of rights - of course there is - and we always have to get that right. We all get that and farmers get that too. As a country and as a Government, through our local authorities and our State agencies we are investing an awful lot, quite rightly, in authorised walkways, whether they are greenways, blueways or cycleways. There has been huge investment and there needs to be more to make sure people can enjoy our countryside. It might be that this lessens even further the excuse for people to trespass, in any shape or form, on a farmers' land. We must work co-operatively, as we do, in partnership with farmers. The experience right around the country is that this works quite well. As a country, we need to take a tougher approach on trespassing. As the Deputy said, we are not talking about somebody who accidentally does this. We are talking about the examples we have seen in parts of the country where the actions of people, on quads or anything else, are causing concern, fear and, on occasion, intimidation for people in rural Ireland, farmers and their families. For the record, we have legislation already in place relating to trespassing. I share these details with the House to be useful. The Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 1994, as amended, has specific provisions regarding unauthorised entry onto or occupation of land. Part IIA of that Act - sections 19A to 19H, as inserted in 2002 - provides for offences in relation to illegal trespass and occupation of land, including public land provided or maintained by a statutory body or held in trust for the enjoyment of the public, and land covered by water. In that legislation, gardaí are given powers to direct trespassers to leave and to remove objects. It sets out offences, and penalties including fines on conviction of up to €4,000 or terms of imprisonment, or both. The Department of justice, the Minister for justice and the Government are keeping this matter under review. It would be useful - I am trying to think of the best mechanism to bring it forward - to find a way to tease these issues through. Perhaps the Oireachtas justice committee could be a vehicle for this. I will certainly speak to the Minister for justice on that. In principle, I acknowledge that this is an issue that is causing a challenge. It was never right and is even less so when we are making such a conscious effort as a country to provide more opportunities for people to safely and legally enjoy the beautiful outdoors in Ireland. We need to listen carefully to the concerns of our rural community who feel their rights in terms of their own land are not being fully respected.

I thank the Tánaiste for his response and the co-operation, which we need urgently. While there is legislation in place, farmers and gardaí are telling me that it is insufficient because it is not giving them enough power. That is where we need to toughen those laws, which I know the Tánaiste is happy to do. He acknowledged that and it is certainly welcome. However, there is another issue where the current legislation puts the onus on the farmer. A farmer who is possibly being intimidated by a gang - maybe their family is being intimidated too - is expected to get up in court and give evidence. There is a big problem there. As a farmer who endured a distressing ordeal said to me, it is putting the handcuffs on the landowner when they should be on the trespasser. I want to mention a related issue that is becoming deeply disturbing. Farmers have informed me that dogs are being deliberately set on sheep. Earlier this week, Senator Paul Daly held an audiovisual room briefing about attacks on sheep. I have heard disturbing reports that this is being done deliberately. We need to crack down on and be much tougher on this issue.

There is an issue here, and potentially a legislative one. That is why we should keep the laws under review. We will engage constructively on the Deputy's Bill, and on any views from the Minister for justice, the Garda and others around the law. There is also an issue of enforcement because we are seeing - I am certainly hearing it more and more - attacks on sheep and the likes. There is a sense that sometimes this is being done to intimidate people to access their land. We all live in the same country and we try to share this land. We all try to get on with our business in a respectful way. We want people to be able to go out and enjoy the countryside, to walk and to cycle. We want kids to enjoy the fresh air and explore the beauties of our country in all weather. We need to provide more safe and secure ways to do that by putting in proper walkways and proper routes in partnership with farmers and working with local authorities. Alongside that, we need to take a tougher approach when people do not respect the laws and trespass in a way that causes significant distress. I will ask the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, to revert to the Deputy directly.