Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)

I warmly welcome the Minister's comments ruling out nuclear power as a future option in this country. I endorse those comments but I differ with him on one point. One of the main arguments against it, as well as the environmental one, is that economically it makes no sense. It is probably the most expensive form of power. Given that our renewable energy supplies are significantly cheaper at present than what the CER recognises as the price of a best new entrant gas supplier, the cheapest of the fossil fuels, what would limit the amount of renewables we should develop? This country has a remarkable abundance of wave, wind, biomass and tidal power. There are 21 different supplies of renewables. Why would we think of limiting it? Why not go for 100% energy from renewables within our lifetime?

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