Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

While I welcome the statement in the Minister's reply that there will be a review, and we appear to have some time to have an input into that, the problem is that we will end up having guidelines. The difficulty is that, while a county development plan has some standing, as a believer in local democracy I feel it should have a stronger standing, particularly when councillors such as those in Laois set out areas that are designated for wind turbines in proper locations. That should be respected. The problem with guidelines is that they will not have statutory weight; they can be overruled. Large companies will come up with arguments to override them, and when we read headlines such as the one I have to hand from a local Laois newspaper, which states that Laois farmers could reap millions from wind turbines, with the article stating that a person could get up to €25,000 per annum for having one of these giant turbines in his or her field, there will be a stampede for wind turbines. I fear that by the end of the year large parts of the midlands will be dotted with turbines; we will have the turbines first and then the planning applications. I wish to highlight that in areas of counties Laois and Offaly, as well as others, there is an urgent need to deal with this issue. We cannot lock the stable door after the horse has bolted. We must take action on it now. It is urgent, and it is important that we put proper guidelines in place such as those proposed by Deputy Penrose and Senator Kelly.

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