Mr. Neil Davidson:

It is correct to state that we are at the research and development stage, but it is "big R&D", with full scale devices in the water. These things cost over €10 million per device, with three or four devices going into the water. As Mr. Barry stated, we need a long-term view so that as well as building the devices, there is somewhere to put them, operate them and generate electricity. If the Bill was passed in 2014, a leasing round could be opened and leases could be awarded by 2016, followed by two years of EIA. Even if the Parliament moved quickly and legislated now, it could still be 2018 or 2019 before a site might be ready for somebody to put the technology. There is this parallel process of developing technology and the processes alongside it, such as the EIA systems, the consenting, the leasing, the market mechanisms and so on, so that when the technology is ready, the market is ready. If we wait until the technology is developed, it could be another five years after that, so there is a need to act.