Ms Laura Behan:

I will let Mr. Rice add to my response if he wishes. From our initial consultations with ESB Networks and Bord Gáis Networks, they have been enthusiastically pursuing the rolling out of this infrastructure. I am not sure whether the roadblocks to which the Deputy referred will apply in this instance. The Commission has not stipulated how the targets should be achieved. It also sees a role for the private sector. The semi-State companies will not necessarily deliver on the infrastructure networks. We must work out how the Government will deliver on the targets and whether the semi-State companies will be the mechanism through which that will be done. We must bear in mind that the cost would be passed on to the consumers of gas and electricity. So far, I have not got the sense that the semi-State companies will pose an obstacle.