John Carty (Mayo, Fianna Fail)

The discovery of natural gas off the County Mayo coast was broadly welcomed by most people in the county and elsewhere as a wonderful boost to meeting Ireland's energy needs for the next quarter of a century. When it was eventually announced that the gas would be brought ashore in Mayo a bright future was predicted for the county. The planning and construction of this major project has been fraught with difficulty in recent years, culminating in a number of people finding themselves in jail for 94 days. The recent release from jail of the Rossport five is welcome news for their families and the general Erris community. I hope it will pave the way for constructive and meaningful dialogue that will result in a speedy resolution to the safety problems with the gas pipeline.

It is unfortunate that the men in question found themselves in jail for taking action in response to fundamental fears about the safety of the project. All disputes are eventually resolved by dialogue in a calm and meaningful way, with each side listening to the point of view of the other, and this dispute is no different.

I compliment the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Deputy Noel Dempsey, on his proactive role in attempting to break the impasse in this dispute by having the men released from jail. Once the dispute became a subject of the courts, it became ever more difficult for the Government to intervene. Since the imprisonment of the five men, the Minister has endeavoured at every opportunity to create the conditions which would allow the dispute to be resolved. A full safety review of the Corrib onshore pipeline has been initiated, while the monitoring and supervision of the project has also increased. In addition, Advantica Consultants will conduct a full safety review and a public consultation process, including a two-day local oral hearing scheduled to take place later this month. People who have views on the safety of the pipeline will have the opportunity to have their opinions considered by the consultants and local residents and communities and interested parties have been invited to express their views on the issue. These are all positive steps taken by the Government and the Minister to further an open and transparent solution to the ongoing problem. The matter was also discussed recently at the Joint Committee on Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, during which all participants in the debate sought movement on the issue.

In recent times, it has become clear that certain political parties were exploiting the Rossport five to further their own political agendas. Intimidation was the order of the day, as people with genuine concerns about the plight of the men who tried to mediate in some way were subjected to harassment. The involvement of those people or their accomplices in upcoming discussions will do nothing to promote a satisfactory resolution to this problem that has plagued the community of north Mayo over the past three months.

I warmly welcome the fact that in the past week both sides have taken steps forward and that the five men have returned to their families. I welcome the fact, mentioned earlier by the Minister, that representatives from both sides have gone into the site today. This move, along with the appointment of a mediator by the Government, will allow all those concerned to participate fully in the public consultation process of the safety review and I hope that both parties will create the conditions which will allow such a process to commence immediately. I urge those involved, working together in an open manner, to reach a solution that is acceptable to all.

See this speech in context