Noel Dempsey (Meath, Fianna Fail)

This debate has suggested to me that part of the difficulty we have in this regard is that certain people do a great deal of talking but very little listening. I would like to respond to some of the serious issues which were raised.

Deputy Kenny asked whether the environmental issues will be dealt with under supervised access. I mentioned earlier that the matter has been taken in hand today. Local people who have asked for supervised access have been allowed to visit the site to observe what is taking place. The Deputy also asked about the economic benefits of the project, which I have outlined on previous occasions. The major benefit of the project is that it will give this country an indigenous gas supply. It will lead to a reduction of approximately 50% in this country's imports of gas.

See this speech in context