Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)

Is the statement by the Commission for Energy Regulation in effect an example of the regulator making policy and doing the Minister's job? Is it the Minister's job to set the ultimate parameters of the types of energy this country will use? Is this a step too far by the regulator? Has the regulator a busy time ahead given that we are only days away from full market opening on 19 February?

Does the Minister's statement mean we cannot expect any other alternative energy requirements, AERs, and that AER V and AER VI will be the last? To what does the Minister attribute the failure to bring on-stream more megawatts of wind energy given the existence of those two schemes? Have the issues that arose in regard to the integration of wind power into the national grid been dealt with in the new grid code? Is the Minister satisfied there are no more technical problems in regard to integrating wind into the national grid?

Does the Minister have ideas to bring forward on market support mechanisms for wind power? The company to which I refer, Airtricity, stated more than a week ago its enterprise would be devoted to the other country in western Europe with massive wind resources, namely, Scotland. Is the Minister disappointed this trailblazing company has had to turn away from Ireland because of what it feels is a lack of commitment, by the Minister's predecessor in particular, to the development of wind power?

The British target is still to have up to one sixth of energy created from wind and renewable energy sources by 2010. Given our resources, is the determination of the Department very poor in this regard and, therefore, is the regulator's comment unfortunate?

See this speech in context