Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)

They could well be busy but I hope they do not exert themselves too much because running in front of or behind a squad car is a very strenuous exercise. I expect to see the Green Party's influence in this area soon. There is no use being shy or coy about it. They need to demonstrate their willingness to act.

Deputy P. J. Sheehan mentioned the road infrastructure to Cork. It is an awful reflection on our country which has been one of the wealthiest nations in the world, or certainly in Europe, for the past number of years that we still do not have a proper motorway to Cork, the southern capital, or to the south west. Notwithstanding everything that has happened heretofore, it is only now that we are suddenly realising nothing happens unless one plans and provides money. Our colleague across the water, Margaret Thatcher, when in government, decided in her latter years in office that there would be no more road building. This was seen by environmentalists as a great score and recognition of environmental issues. What she did not tell them was that she would not have to spend any money building roads and that it was a huge saving. As a result, the subsequent British Government had to invest. We can learn from the mistakes of our neighbours and can inspire others around us by doing the right thing.

I refer to our future transport requirements which we should bear in mind. In the 1940s and 1950s, we had roughly half the population we have now. It is quite easy, but expensive, to service a small population in terms of transport and other requirements. However, it is much more difficult to meet the transport requirements in today's world if one does not have a good network of obstruction-free roads. If we are not in a position to deliver to the public its requirements on a regular basis and reliably, we will face serious problems.

Incidentally, I saw an interesting programme on RTE recently in which energy and transport were discussed as well as the threat presented. It is not a threat but merely a challenge we must face. Many of the prophets of doom tell us the reasons we should be fearful of the future but I am surprised so few tell us the options of which there are many. It is purely a matter of developing those options. This country has plenty of options, including alternative and clean fuel. It is not true to say we face a doomsday situation. It is within our grasp to ensure we prevail in the future in the same way as other countries will. It is not true that the only answer to climate change is if everybody runs scared. Scientists are developing and bringing forward the options and alternatives. The time, energy and money we expend on research and development in that area will be money well spent.

I refer to a matter which has been a bone of contention with me for a long time. I cannot understand why we do not build roads for the future. We build roads for the past all the time. The M50, when completed, was already out of date. The only road built to stand the test of time was the Naas dual carriageway. It stood the test of time from the 1950s until the past couple of years. All the other roads built in the past ten years have failed the test of time within two or three years. Why take out a slow lane and build another lane? No other country does that. Rather, they build a road to take a precise amount of traffic over a projected period of time. They do it well and plan it accurately. Why can we not do that here? Why has it not been done?

I remember when I saw the original excavations for the M50 I rang the Department of the Environment to ask what had gone wrong. The works did not reflect the plan which had been shown to the local authorities, including Kildare County Council, which had an ongoing interest in the issue. I was informed that cost-cutting was responsible and the plan was to build a cheaper road. However, it has not worked out cheaper. Every day infrastructural expenditure is postponed, the cost is multiplied. The infrastructure will have to be provided at some stage in the future, but it will not be done for less. It is the lesson that must and can be learned from every infrastructural project undertaken in this country in the past ten years.

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