Mr. Philip Nugent:

Again, a Department would be brought into a space of trying to influence a decision taken by Bord na Móna which operates on a commercial basis. It was affected in the same way as every other operator. It does not make sense to isolate it and say it should have done something at that point to respond to the High Court decision. All operators then, and many years previously, should have engaged with the system so that we could have avoided being in the situation we are in today. I should also add that Bord na Móna started the process of seeking substitute consent specifically for the horticultural peat sites.