Pat Deering (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

As I am not a member of this committee, I am delighted to get the opportunity to say a few words on the issue. I come from County Carlow, which is possibly the region most affected by this issue, as there are four potential corridors through the county, which is the second smallest in the country. One would have to wonder how that came about. I compliment Ms Fitzgerald on her leadership, as this is the first group in the county to deal with the issue.

We have heard much about the consultation or lack thereof, and that seems to be the problem. Approximately a year and a half ago, this process started with EirGrid in our area and to say there was a lack of information is an understatement. I am a cynic in this regard. There are four potential corridors identified but I am of the opinion that a corridor has been picked without telling people. The policy is one of divide and conquer, with four corridors identified and the whole county rightly up in arms. With human nature as it is - this is the tragedy - when a corridor is picked, three quarters of the people will be happy and think that at least it is not in their back yard. There will be 25% of people very unhappy. Mr. McCusker made the point that public representatives were made aware of the process and got packs and so on. That may be so but there was no interest in the matter. People were not aware where a line or corridor was to be, and it is only in the past four or five weeks, when corridors were put on a map, that people stood up and took notice.

As there is a lack of information, a vacuum exists, and nobody can fill it. Some of us present are probably more informed than others, especially those from the Monaghan group who have been on the road longer than others, but information must be procured to fill that void. It should be independent and from appropriate sources. The solution must be found and the only way for this to come about is through an independent expert group being put in place to formulate such a solution. There should be a cost-benefit analysis, as Deputy Coffey mentioned, of the underground and overground processes. There should be analysis of implications from a tourism and environmental perspective.

That is what we need to find out. To reiterate Deputy Coffey's point, what are the implications for the line or corridor that has been in place for the last number of years from Moneypoint to Kildare from the point of view of the valuation of property and so forth? That is the course we must take.

However, I believe the solution must be to get an independent expert group in and put its cards on the table, because there is absolutely no credibility in EirGrid. The representatives of EirGrid will appear before this committee two or three weeks hence and will make a very powerful presentation, as they did in Carlow and other counties in the last few weeks, and they will leave after being very evasive in their answers to questions. It will be a powerful presentation. Without naming anybody in particular, they are very well qualified on the matter from both the engineering and media points of view. There is probably nobody in this committee capable of asking them the questions that need to be asked. Therefore, I return to my main point which is that we need that expert group or expert opinion brought into the system to educate this committee and everybody else on the matter. That is my suggestion.