Seymour Crawford (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)

It is serious when one is up against a nitrates directive about which nothing has been done and other problems.

I pay tribute to the Ceann Comhairle and to his colleague, former Deputy Jimmy Leonard, who worked with me through three Governments to try to get this through the competition, but the ESB and others blocked it. We then went to Europe — we talked about Europe in this House all day — and it was helpful and brought us through the fifth framework programme. When we returned, Forfás, which had promised the land for the project outside Monaghan town in the mid-1990s, suddenly found that all its land was used and could no longer be given. The land is for sale at present and this is the truth of the matter. The Government put the obstacles in the way. The company applied for planning permission on its own farm but had not got it 27 months later, and the matter is now before the court. A letter for the attention of the company dated 4 May states: "I refer to the above Judicial Review and the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government wish to have the relevant Minister joined as a Notice Party to these proceedings", between Monopower and Monaghan County Council.

I hope this will help establish the powerplant, but I doubt it. I believe it is just another obstacle being put in the way by the Government.

If we are serious about meeting deadlines and implementing proposals, we must surely start within the Departments and ensure that there are sufficient personnel to help people who are prepared to invest their own money and to encourage them to do so properly.

The issue of the Monopower plant is now a judicial one. The planning process has been engaged in and I have no involvement in the matter, good, bad or indifferent. The failure of the Government to allow the company to use the site it was promised has caused a lot of friction in the area, as the Ceann Comhairle will confirm. This friction was caused by the Government, not by me or anybody else.

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