Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party) | Oireachtas source

The Minister used to have four full-time staff working in this area, but now he is down to two. They also have other responsibilities, resulting in telephone calls and e-mails on the issue of ocean development not being answered.

There is potential, but large multinationals have their eye on the resources off our shores. Meanwhile, small developers have spent hundreds of thousands of euro of their own money to develop protocols and prototypes, but they have taken that work as far as they possibly can. Should the Minister not bring these small organisations together and work with them, perhaps under the auspices of the ESB, so that we can harness the potential for Ireland's economy instead of allowing the benefit to be hived off to the multinationals? I understand that large Australian multinationals are interested in the development off Belmullet. Would we not be better off supporting our small, indigenous companies?

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