Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)

I strongly support the amendment. It is a core and fundamental democratic principle that decisions of the board should be reported and placed on the public record for inspection. Far too often we have had this carry on, where well qualified inspectors make lengthy and detailed reports, but the board seems to overturn them on a whim. Of course, it must operate to the dictates of Government policy and, therefore, its hands are tied. However, it should record the reason for its decision and make it public, which is the essence of the amendment. The Minister is indicating that the board does this, but it does not. It does not make its reasons public.

Similarly, the two most fundamental issues concerning any development, people's health and the environment, are not allowed to form part of the consideration. This is Government policy. The Minister will smile at the amendment and dismiss it with the same level of charity he showed to previous amendments. We will deal with this issue in the coming months.

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