Results 1-16 of 16 for in 'Dáil debates' segment:1714319

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Róisín Shortall: Question 142: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the position regarding his request to the British authorities to allow Irish experts to inspect the Sellafield nuclear plant; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2886/04]

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Emmet Stagg: Question 197: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to the concern expressed by the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland that it has become more difficult to obtain information on Sellafield from the British authorities since 11 September 2001; if he has raised those concerns with the British Government; the response...

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Martin Cullen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 142 and 197 together. Access to Sellafield by Irish experts has been sought by the Irish Government on an ongoing basis and in February 2000 staff of the RPII received permission for a formal visit to the site. Based on its examination of the safety documentation, in December 2000 the RPII produced a report on the storage of liquid high-level radioactive waste...

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Emmet Stagg: Plutonium in children's teeth is double the normal level in the area around Sellafield, according to the British Minister for Health. There is a leaking roof on a storage tank in Sellafield and a strike took place among workers at the plant which put it at risk. Waste pipes from the facility have recently been washed up on the shore and more are missing. A new storage facility for additional...

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Martin Cullen: I do not accept that. There is, and has been, fairly strong consensus in this House. As a former Minister with some responsibility in the area, the Deputy knows the difficulties first hand. However, we have advanced matters quite far under two cases, OSPAR and UNCLOS — the Deputy referred only to one. The situation regarding the European Court of Justice and the Commission believing that it...

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Séamus Pattison: Before I call Deputy Allen, I remind the House that supplementary questions and answers are subject to a one-minute time limit.

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Bernard Allen: I will deal specifically with the question on the Order Paper. I asked a question on the lock-up policy of the British Government regarding our nuclear experts from the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland and suggested that, at prime ministerial level, Mr. Blair might give the Taoiseach details of the security systems in place in Sellafield to assure us that there is no risk in the...

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Martin Cullen: The Deputy knows this is an issue in which the Taoiseach engages in a fulsome way and which is always on his agenda. I think he has confirmed to the House that he raised this matter with the British Prime Minister. I do not have the details but I am confident he has confirmed it to the House.

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Bernard Allen: May we have the details?

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Martin Cullen: Following the cases, serious discussions are going on as to how we implement and improve substantially the relationship between Ireland and the UK covering the full range of issues which the Deputy, Deputy Stagg, others and I have raised. However, these are not complete. I am anxious for them to be completed and when they are, I will give a full account to the House as to what the position...

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Ciarán Cuffe: When the Minister took office, highly dangerous radioactive material was stored in rusty sheds in the Sellafield complex and that material is still stored in rusty sheds. When was the last time the Minister discussed the issue of Sellafield with his UK counterpart?

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Martin Cullen: I did so just before Christmas, less than two months ago. I raised it in my pre-Presidency discussions with Minister Beckett. The Minister of State, Deputy Gallagher, was with me and we went on to meet the Minister for Energy on the same occasion. We had lengthy meetings on various subjects and I raised this with them. As I said to Deputy Allen, negotiations and discussions are taking place...

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Emmet Stagg: Arising from what he said, will the Minister state the prospects of the British authorities agreeing to the Radiological Protection Institution of Ireland being allowed to effectively and meaningfully visit the facility at Sellafield? When does he expect that might happen?

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Martin Cullen: As the Deputy knows, the RPII visited the site previously. When we talk about the site, one of the issues is that it is a vast site. The issue is perhaps more important than simply getting on to the site. I hope we can resolve this issue and see a further visit in the near future, but I am guarded in what I say for specific reasons, which the Deputy may appreciate, as I follow up on the...

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Arthur Morgan: Is the Minister aware of the seriousness of this threat? Only last week in a court in Cumbria, British Nuclear Fuels Limited was fined £30,000 sterling when it was found guilty of and admitted to endangering the life of one of its divers. Is the Minister aware that the health and safety executive in Britain advised that court that the British Nuclear Fuels Limited systems were wholly...

Nuclear Plants. (3 Feb 2004)

Martin Cullen: I reiterate that the Government remains committed to and is deeply concerned about the activities at Sellafield, as it always has been. The Government will use every avenue open to it, legal and otherwise, to ensure it gets the message home to the British Government and, ultimately, to achieve its objective which many people in Ireland and elsewhere would like to see, that is, the closure of...