Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)

It is welcome that REFIT 2 is taking place. The Minister has differentiated between onshore and offshore energy. The Minister linked Northern Ireland and the South in terms of wind energy and renewable energy but there is a different approach being taken in the North. An article in The Sunday Business Post two weeks ago considered how this development is happening in one place but not another. The article was interesting and pointed out that an 800 MW round for offshore wind was announced last month in Down and Antrim. The complaint in the article was that this presented a stark contrast between North and South. How is it viable in the North but not viable in the South? Given the conditions and the fact that Ireland is an island nation, we have a unique advantage that we are not exploiting. While we have enormous ambition about delivery, it is limited if we do not exploit offshore energy. Has the Minister sought clearance from the European Union in respect of offshore energy? If not, why not? The investment that can be made strikes me as something that is well worth exploring. There may be jobs in a range of industries and expertise in the offshore area. Has the Minister sought clearance? If not, why not? Does he intend to seek clearance and when will he do so?

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