Patrick Nulty (Dublin West, Labour)

I thank the Minister of State. It is vital that the research undertaken is objective and is seen to be so. The University of Aberdeen is funded substantially by the oil and gas industry and the Government should examine whether having the research done by a university whose key funders have a vested interest is appropriate, given that fracking is banned, for example, in New South Wales, Australia and Quebec and Canada. The environmental authorities in New York found that 260 different chemicals were used in the process. Does the Minister of State agree that the precautionary principle should apply, that the previous Fianna Fáil-led Government was premature in granting the initial exploratory licences and that there should be a moratorium on fracking in the State until more knowledge and information becomes available to ensure the safety of the entire process?

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