Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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Question 3: To ask the Minister for Communications; Energy and Natural Resources if he will re-route the Eirgrid high voltage DC cable away from the main street of Rush, County Dublin, in view of commitments (details supplied) given to the local community; and the present status of this issue. [11148/11]

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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EirGrid, the State-owned independent electricity transmission system company, is building the east west interconnector between Ireland and Britain. The construction of this vital strategic infrastructure by EirGrid is on budget and on schedule for completion next year.

I have no role in the planning and construction of transmission infrastructure, which are operational matters for EirGrid. The planning process for strategic energy infrastructure is a matter for An Bord Pleanála under the Strategic Infrastructure Act. It would not be appropriate for me or any Minister to intervene in respect of the planning process.

The interconnector obtained full planning permission from An Bord Pleanála in September 2009. This approval followed a comprehensive assessment process, including an oral hearing, at which all stakeholders were present including Rush Community Council. It is being developed and constructed in line with all relevant national, EU and international guidelines for health, safety and the environment. EirGrid has advised that construction of the ducts for the cable is well advanced with approximately 75% of the construction of the ducting in Rush now completed.

Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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The Minister could have saved himself a lot of time and just said "no", which seems to be the short answer to the question as to whether he would consider the rerouting of the cable away from the population of Rush. It is irrelevant that the project has been through the planning process. In many instances, ventures that are given planning permission have the permission altered and Eirgrid, as the Minister has acknowledged, is State-owned.

Rush is the only populated area through which this high voltage cable has been laid and while the ducting is largely underground, the cable itself has not been inserted. Could the Minister comment on the status of the Kema report into the safety concerns of residents about the cable, why it has not been factored in and why he has not instructed Eirgrid to wait for the report to be done? Crucially, why did his ministerial and party colleagues, while in opposition, give a commitment to the people in that town that if they were in Government after the election, they would ensure the cable was rerouted?

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I have been unable to find any colleagues who gave any such undertakings before or since the election. After all that has happened in the past 30 years, the idea of the Minister interfering in the planning process is an extraordinary proposition for Deputy Daly to advance. If I interfered in a project like this, why should I not interfere in one of Deputy Wallace's construction projects? What sort of accusations would that leave me open to from Deputy Daly?

Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)
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There is a bit of a difference.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I am sure there is a measure of agreement between Deputy Daly and myself that this is vital strategic national infrastructure. It is imperative this is concluded. I am glad it is coming in on budget and on time. The ducting is already in place and I am confident it will meet the targets.

Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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No one opposes the cable; the issue is that it is being inserted in a heavily populated area, feet away from schools, crèches and houses. The fact that a State organisation seeks and is granted planning permission for a project is neither here nor there. The organisation falls under the Minister's jurisdiction and he can instruct it to seek an alternative planning route that will take it away from densely populated areas. That is all that is being sought.

The Minister did not comment on the safety report that has not been commissioned yet. It is becoming the norm for Eirgrid to not bother waiting for reports to be commissioned, it just ploughs ahead regardless. Ultimately Eirgrid reports to the Minister and it is not good enough.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I assure the Deputy that I have gone to considerable lengths to establish if there is a safety risk and I am absolutely, and I stress that, assured that no risk exists. I agree that just because this is a State body making a planning application, it does not make it right. The proposition, however, that I should interfere is wrong; it is a matter for the planning authorities to decide if it is right, if it is in compliance or if it is a health risk. The planning authorities have gone through all of this and I am assured there is no health risk, that this is a project of profound value to everyone on the island because of concerns of security of supply and ensuring we have an energy supply in the future, and the hope that it will bring down prices. This is vital national infrastructure and if I thought there was a 0.1% risk to health as a result of the project, I might take a different view.