James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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I am not happy with the answers to my last question. The Ceann Comhairle's letter is quite clear. He points out that he has re-examined the Bill and performed a second inspection of it and the surrounding environment. He re-read all the Second Stage and Committee Stage debates in light of the request that he re-evaluate it.

I have another question which the Minister of State may have to take away but in the spirit of the Ceann Comhairle's directive he might come back to us as soon as possible, ideally in the next week. The Ceann Comhairle has accepted that a money message is required because of the direct financial implications being applications, fees for licences, maybe compensation to licence holders or prospective licence holders. Could the Department clarify the number of licences or leases committed to, what types of lease they are, their commencement and expiry dates, what legal agreements have been made, what kind of acreage we are talking about in these fields and the fees associated with each? These are details of all the prospective or existing licences that the Department will have to compensate for if the Bill passes. That would give us a greater understanding of the money message and we can assess its implications in light of that information.