Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The fact the Deputy did not like or understand the reply is more of a reflection on him than it is on me, quite frankly.

In respect of the programme for Government, it is there in black and white. Anyone can read it. It is clear what the programme for Government states on LNG, and that programme for Government was approved after a democratic vote by the Oireachtas Members of my party, our councillors and our members, and everyone in Fianna Fáil and the Green Party. Everyone in the three parties was very aware of what they were signing up for when they personally voted for that programme for Government, which they did.

There is currently a planning application lodged with respect to the proposed LNG terminal in Tarbert. As I have said before in this House, the planning application is live and is with An Bord Pleanála. If that terminal is granted planning permission and if the developers and promoters can build it, they can proceed and the Government will not block it. However, we believe that the future, the future we stand for, when it comes to energy has to be about price stability and energy security. We do not believe importing natural gas or fracked gas, or importing any fuel in fact, is going to provide us with energy security and price stability. We are facing the problems we now face precisely because we have to import oil, coal and gas from Russia, the Middle East, Venezuela and other parts of the world. It is not a good position to be in.

The Deputy seems to be advocating we should continue that forever. We do not think that is right; things need to change. We believe the future is in renewables, not in producing electricity from coal, oil, gas or turf but in producing offshore wind, which provides the electricity we need, coupled with interconnection, and turning offshore wind into hydrogen. Hydrogen is the fuel of the future because it can replace natural gas, power trucks and be dispatchable, and can even be used in power plants instead of natural gas. That is the vision we have, particularly for the Shannon Estuary and for sites such as Moneypoint, Foynes and Tarbert. That is the solution, producing our own energy in that region along the Shannon Estuary, with renewable energy from wind backed up with batteries and interconnection, and turning it into hydrogen, which will turn us from being an energy importer to being an energy exporter. That is the vision I have for Clare, Limerick and Kerry. We should make energy something we produce and sell abroad, not something we invest in and just store. That is why I stand for the future and the Deputy stands for the past.

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