Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The Minister raised the Fianna Fáil Private Members' motion. Yesterday, I asked about red-line issues. The Minister has published documentation exchanged between himself and Mr. Moat on the red-line issues. We have had no articulation from the Minister as to what those issues were between Eir and the Government.

The Minister seeks to be non-partisan on this. As soon as he decided he would set a 90-week target, or whatever it was, on this, it became a politically driven target. It is a bit rich for the Minister to come to the House tonight and tell us that we should not play politics with this. Last week in the House, Deputy Brendan Howlin, raised the matter of there being a plan B. The Minister has failed to tell the House this evening what that plan B is. All we have been told is that he is supporting the Enet bit, but even then the Minister has not told us what price will now be paid for the Enet tender.

Going back to the 131,000 figure, some of the houses have been passed by. I spoke of a very typical scenario which happens in rural Ireland where one might have an enclave of 12 houses. Some 12 poles to their left and to their right are covered but that enclave in the middle is not covered. Can the Minister guarantee that in these the blackspots, that the State-aided national broadband plan will cover these, at a price?

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