Mr. John Fitzgerald:

The Senator asked about cost. We have a comparative advantage with wind so we can make it. It has been made in the UK and France for a wholesale price of 4p per kW hour. That is really competitive. It does not need a subsidy and we are not asking for one. We are asking for a framework to work out how much we want to do and to set out a road map to have as much offshore wind energy as possible because as was said, our resource is huge. The question is how much we want to contribute to decarbonising Europe through our offshore wind resource because that is our strength. Offshore wind energy and wind energy are what we have. We are at 55° degrees latitude in the north west. If we want to do other things we can do them as well but wind is what we have a comparative advantage with. We want to export and earn revenue from doing that. It is not about subsidising our industry. It is about our industry creating wealth for our economy, generating jobs, helping us meet our climate commitments and helping others to meet their climate commitments. It is about leadership.