Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am talking about two separate things. In terms of Europe, we are developing a single European energy market and are driving forward with a European energy union. We need it more than anyone else in Europe. I was talking to my Portuguese and Spanish colleagues earlier this week, and they are also very anxious about interconnectivity. The reality is we import a substantial amount of energy. The vast majority of our energy comes from abroad. I would love to see us self-sufficient but we are not going to be for a long time to come, so we need this interconnectivity. We need co-operation across Europe while Britain is in the European Union and we will definitely need it when Britain leaves the European Union. We need to make sure that the system we have here in Ireland complies with what is happening elsewhere in Europe. Remember that we have a fully open competitive electricity and gas market here and I want to see more competition come in through interconnectivity. As I said at the outset, it is not just in terms of gas, and we are exploring the option of liquified natural gas in the Shannon Estuary which could provide competition to our gas interconnection with the UK.

Next week, President Hollande will come to Dublin to discuss the Celtic interconnector between Ireland and France so that we have electricity interconnection outside of these islands. Last month, at the Council of Ministers' meeting, I signed a political declaration with the other North Sea countries about developing offshore, wind, tidal and wave resources in order that we can work together on them.

That will require interconnectivity and having similar laws across Europe in order to manage and operate that. It will not work if we are at complete variance. We cannot go it alone. We are an island located off an island that will soon be outside of the European Union. There is an idea that Ireland can work on its own and do what it wants but where do we go for energy?

In terms of the specific question about communities, I agree with the Deputy that we should give communities access-----