Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)

Would it not have been wiser to publish the Deloitte & Touche report thereby giving everybody, including the public and journalists, equal access to it? They would not have had to speculate if that had been done, and it is easy to speculate. The Minister might be able to resolve some of that speculation now. For example, what is his policy direction on the future ownership of the grid? Will it be kept in public ownership and will there be any change in that? For instance, in respect of any future agreements entered into in the aftermath of the need to introduce more competition, is the Minister satisfied that the security of the grid will be maintained given that that is of absolute necessity? Will he further indicate whether he and his Department have learned from the experiences of Eircom regarding investment in infrastructure and providing for the future? What are those experiences and how will the Minister deal with them?

Having read the Deloitte & Touche report, is the Minister confirming that nobody has seen the report other than the two bodies to which he referred? Is that true? Is the Minister certain about that because if it were not true it would be very embarrassing for many people, including and most importantly the Minister?

See this speech in context