Paul Connaughton Snr (Galway East, Fine Gael)

Members on all sides of the House have welcomed the Bill. As has been stated, Fine Gael supports the Bill, which is one of those evolving measures that so often comes before the House in regard to companies like an Bord Gáis.

The Bill provides us with an opportunity to speak about the activities of Bord Gáis, where we would like to see it go and related matters. The increase in the lending limit from €1.7 billion to €3 billion is a big increase. However, all Members are happy to accede to this provision which is, I assume, based on sound management principles.

Bord Gáis has been extremely good at running its core business. Suffice to say, from a layman's point of view — the Minister of State might refer to this when summing up — Bord Gáis is a lucky company in that given the current atmosphere in the financial markets, had it to raise this type of money tomorrow morning — I presume it will require the $3 billion over a number of years — it would be facing a difficult task. Ireland is experiencing a financial crisis, as are many countries worldwide.

On an occasion like this, it is important to point out that Bord Gáis has been one of the better Irish companies. It has been extremely good at its core business, namely, the supply of natural gas. It has, in more recent times, done a great deal of work in the west. Unlike most other utilities, it is seldom we hear complaints about the manner in which Bord Gáis carries out its work despite it having laid countless miles of piping around the country, acquired land, undertaken wayleave agreements and addressed all the legal aspects in this regard. It has dealt reasonably with the farming community and landowners. It appears to have been one of those particularly good national schemes that worked as per specification and plan. As far as I am aware, there were few rows in this regard.

It is hoped that Bord Gáis will strive to deliver a first-class service at a price people can afford. This brings me back to an important issue. Everybody knows that the base price for a barrel of crude oil affects all aspects of our lives. The increase last July to $147 a barrel for crude oil sent everyone into a tizzy, including world airlines and diesel prices.

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