Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)

It is unfortunate the Minister of State has raised that matter because I am sick to my teeth listening to people giving advice that issues should be discussed at committee meetings. This is the national Parliament, the place where these issues should be thrashed out in the first instance. Minor details can be dealt with by the committee but here, in Parliament, is where the job is done or not done. The day the Minister delegates his authority to anywhere other than Parliament is the day he will be sorry. More importantly, it is a day the population will regret because that is the day accountability will recede from the people, which is a serious development.

I will not go through the list of functions for which the CER is already responsible. The kind of crimes the CER could be accused of, the areas in which the CER has been unable to deliver and the things it should be delivering are so many and varied that I am glad the CER does not have to run for election. If it did, it would be in deep trouble. Its remit ranges from energy prices to access to the grid to the provision of various services, such as telecommunications to the Black Valley and such places.

There is probably a need for a regulator. It is a European concept. How did we manage before regulators were invented?

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