Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

My record on the matter is well known.

Second, I would like to retain the company as a single entity as far as possible. Separating the network from the transmission system was mentioned, but I cannot see the logic. Some of the 110 kV lines are considered transmission whereas others are considered network. If transmission is different, large areas of the west technically have network lines and no transmission lines. It is a fallacious argument. As time passes, what is now network will become transmission because more power will start coming from wind farms in the west.

The Minister's comments were right, but I hope he will reflect on my next remarks. The minute the Government sells a stake, no matter how small, someone on the board can force every shareholder to say that the return on the capital is more important than any national interest. The ESB has been helpful in ensuring the industrial price for electricity remains competitive. When the construction industry collapsed and the timber mills hit the wall, Coillte adjusted prices and allowed our mills to return to the market. After eight weeks, they were working flat out exporting timber. Without a State entity to take a rational national view, this would not have been the case.

I predict that, if the Government sells a minority stake-----

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