Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I offer my congratulations to Mr. Coyle, who has long been an advocate for this concept. People are perhaps slow learners, catching up with him in his vision for this sector. Given his experience in the IDA and Enterprise Ireland, to what extent is this concept on their agenda? He talks of a political direction but from my relatively long experience in that Department, the IDA and Enterprise Ireland are regarded as the most professional and well-informed in identifying sectors where Ireland can become very competitive in the long term. Political decisions did not lead to electronics, biopharma or some of these major sectors. To what extent have the IDA and Enterprise Ireland developed their internal familiarity and thinking about the sector in order that they could sustain the case that this is not only a key opportunity in energy terms but also in industrial policy terms?

In regard to the national development plan, NDP, as recently revised, which represents €140 billion investment over six or seven years, in Mr. Coyle's view, how would that need to change? There is intense competition for resources between the climate challenge, retrofit and all the other issues, as well as the existing ambitions on the wind and offshore front, compared with education and hospitals. On this issue of making room in the investment programme, in his view how much more room needs to be found to do the sort of things he has identified? The Danes have done these things by state-led investment. At what point does he see a floating wind segment in an auction? The State is right to proceed by way of auction in order that every technology gets a chance to compete. However it recognises that some sectors need a lead time. While segmented pieces for floating wind is an acceptable proposal, how soon does he think that ought to be considered?