Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Colreavy but that is the purpose of public consultation. That was provided in the arrangements. We are talking about a plan that was settled on in 2006 so nobody can seriously suggest that they have been overtaken by its suddenness. The public consultation phase allowed for this element of participation by the public, and we are responding to that. The Deputy is correct. Valid considerations ought to be responded to and taken into account but as he is well aware, there is a great deal of nonsense out there as well and if it was not for the scale of misrepresentation, exaggeration and so on, it would be possible to more efficiently respond to this matter.

The serious side of all this is that the country has to have an energy supply and there is no point in Deputy Colreavy complaining to me about bringing employment to Dromahair, under Ben Bulben's head and various other places in Sligo that I would dearly love to see employment go to if we do not have a reliable energy supply. There are only a few ways known to man so far in terms of how energy can be transmitted, and walking around waving placards at it will not cause the lights to go on or supply a local factory or plant that might locate in different parts of regional Ireland. In terms of the requirements of industry, energy, water and connectivity are the three big concerns today, and I cannot afford to lose sight of that.

I am happy that the consultation process is a rigorous one. The planning arrangements are very rigorous. Every care has been taken by the State to ensure that nobody has advanced a valid apprehension that will not be genuinely tested but at the end of the day, the lights cannot be allowed go out. What do we do with the tourists when they arrive at Dublin Airport? Do we give them lanterns? We must maintain an energy system in this country that is fit for purpose.

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