Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Will I wait for the Minister to come to the House?

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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I am not taking the matter.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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A member of the staff of the House should write to Ministers informing them that they should be in the House in time for the Adjournment Debate, for which fixed times have been set possibly since the foundation of the State.

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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We should raise this matter with the Committee on Procedure and Privileges. This will not happen after the general election.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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One of the Deputies should proceed and perhaps the Minister, Deputy Brennan, would take a note and respond to the matter. I do not mind what order I take the matters.

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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The Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources announced in the Dáil on 4 October that he expected to appoint a Corrib pipeline dispute mediator almost immediately, yet three weeks later there is no sign of any person being appointed. The Minister, Deputy Noel Dempsey, was quoted recently as saying he is still in the process of compiling a list of candidates. Can the Minister update us on where the search for a mediator is at? When will he be in a position to appoint a person to the role? Can he outline the reason the process has taken so long and what is currently delaying the appointment? There are some distinguished people in industrial, economic and academic sectors, who were formerly involved in politics, who might be available to take up this role. Is the Minister aware whether any of them have been approached?

The Tánaiste, Deputy Harney, said in the Dáil this morning that a decision has been made by the Cabinet on an agreed mediator. Can the Minister clarify what exactly did she mean by that? Has any decision been made on who to appoint, or was she simply indicating that a process is being pursued by the Government?

It is unbelievable that it has taken this long for the Minister, Deputy Noel Dempsey, to seek to appoint a mediator, when it was suggested, as early as June by the Labour Party and by my colleague, Deputy Rabbitte, who is present, following the regrettable imprisonment of the five Rossport citizens, that an agreed mediation was the way to go, and that the Minister should urgently move on that as the first stage of getting the men out of prison and getting a process in train. It seems grotesque that it was only after these five decent men from Rossport had spent 94 days in prison and seemingly also after the determination of the Norwegian oil company Statoil and of the new Norwegian Government to get the men out of prison that the Minister finally decided to act on the suggestion of agreed mediation.

The key point is that a window of opportunity was created on the day the Rossport five were released. I and a large number of the membership of the Labour Party and the trade union movement marched around this town with the Rossport five. It was a joyous and hopeful occasion with the people of Dublin saluting them on their stand and hoping that an agreed resolution would be reached. We felt hopeful that Saturday afternoon and the days following. There was great goodwill on all sides to bring about a resolution to the dispute and avoid any repetition of the imprisonment of any more Rossport citizens. The Minister, however, seems to have been unwilling or unable to seize the opportunity to drive forward an agreed process of resolution at that critical juncture. Instead, he seems to have let things slide to the stage where positions on both sides seem again to be hardening.

It is possible we will end up in a further serious dispute about this matter. This complacency and lack of urgency in appointing an agreed mediator unfortunately reflects the approach of the Minister, Deputy Noel Dempsey, and the Government to the dispute over the Corrib gas pipeline. At a press conference in Castlebar on 24 October the Rossport five said that more than three weeks after their release neither the Minister, Deputy Noel Dempsey, nor any of his officials had contacted them in regard to the mediation process. How does the Minister think a resolution of this problem will work if the Department is not in contact with the Rossport citizens and their representatives?

There have been allegations in recent days by the protestors against the pipeline, especially the Shell to Sea group, that the present mediation process is a ploy by the Minister, Deputy Noel Dempsey, and that it has a pre-determined outcome which will favour the pipeline development in its present format. I am interested to hear the Minister's views on the matter and if he thinks the scenario which involved a changed route or some relocation of the pipeline will be allowed go ahead.

If Advantica, the company carrying out the local consultation, was to find in favour of local residents how would the Department deal with that issue? It appears an important role has been played in this issue so far by Mr. Helgestad of Statoil and by the new Norwegian Government, which involves our colleagues in the Norwegian Labour Party, to bring about the release of the Rossport five. Has the Minister had contact with them in the interval? Given that time is dragging on we want to get this issue resolved. There is good will on all sides. We need a resolution. When will the Minister, Deputy Noel Dempsey, act?

Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I wish to assure the Deputy and the House that the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Deputy Noel Dempsey, shares his view that mediation must be the next step forward on the Corrib issue.

The Minister is encouraged by the positive response he received from both sides, to his offer to appoint a mediator. At the time of the release of the five men it was conveyed to the Minister on their behalf that they would appreciate some time to return to normality, meet family and friends and re-adjust their lives following their imprisonment. The Minister, Deputy Noel Dempsey, agreed to this and up to last weekend — by way of a comment in a newspaper — he has received no communication from his contacts with the men that they were unhappy with the fact that a mediator had not been appointed.

In the intervening period a number of people were approached to act as mediators. Through various contacts, a consensus emerged that it might be useful to consider the use of a professional mediation service in addition to a mediator. This is now the course of action which the Minister, Deputy Noel Dempsey, proposes to pursue. Earlier this week, the Minister gave an indicative list of persons to lead the mediation process and both sides agreed with that list. The Minister will now select the mediator from the names agreed by both sides.

One of the important elements informing the forthcoming mediation discussions will be the report of the safety review. The safety review of the onshore upstream gas pipeline will be thorough and comprehensive and will be carried out by independent, internationally recognised experts. Advantica, the successful bidder, is a world leader in the development and application of advanced hazard and risk assessment technologies for gas pipelines.

It has been a priority for the Minister, Deputy Noel Dempsey, that those who have views relating to the safety of the pipeline should have the opportunity to have those views considered by Advantica. Views have been invited from local residents, communities and any interested party. Advantica has visited the Corrib site, as part of its work and, as the Minister has stated, a two-day public hearing was held in County Mayo earlier this month. The hearing was chaired by Mr. John Gallagher SC and provided an opportunity for everyone locally who has concerns to express those concerns. All the safety concerns raised at the hearing are being examined and dealt with by Advantica.

By common consent, the hearings were regarded as successful and as affording to all those who wanted an opportunity to express their views. Arising from these hearings, and on the advice of his technical advisory group, the Minister, Deputy Noel Dempsey, requested Advantica to undertake a review of the issues relating to the ground conditions through which the pipe will run and this will form part of the final report. The Minister wishes to thank Mr. John Gallagher, senior counsel, for the excellent manner in which he has conducted the proceedings. The full transcript of the hearing, as well as all the written submissions received to date, is available on the Department's website.

While the matter is by no means resolved, it is clear that significant progress is being made. The Minister, Deputy Noel Dempsey, hopes that the forthcoming mediation process, augmented as needed by the results of the safety review, will allow all those concerned to work together to resolve the difficulties that have arisen.