Mr. Dara Lynott:

No. We have been conducting research for a long time. We have conducted research which has been valued at €75 million and dates back as far as 2007. We have a tried, tested and robust method of carrying out research. We carry it out by using the right people who help us to decide who should conduct the research and the right people to review the research outputs. Ultimately, as Deputy Denis Naughten indicated, the research has to stand on its own merits in the international community and that makes many people stand to attention. I do not believe we are ahead of the game. Unlike the US Environmental Protection Agency, in 2012 we commissioned an initial small-scale study. We were the ones who proposed this research study to begin with, knowing what was coming down the line. It is our view that we will have the information in advance of any licence being issued. This has been indicated by the Ministers in the North and the South. That is a much stronger position for an environmental protection authority to be in.