Michael Kitt (Fianna Fail)

I join in the welcome to the Minister of State. Like Senator Mooney, I was glad to be an observer at the Western European Union when the Minister of State was our leader. He was referred to as a man of energy which he certainly proved during the last Nice treaty referendum.

I raise the question of alternative energy and the European Union's support or otherwise for it. We are conscious of the Kyoto Protocol and green taxes. I also know the Minister of State dealt with tax harmonisation. There is talk of a review of the EURATOM Treaty which was passed in the late 1950s. Will the Minister of State comment on this? There is a feeling that preferential treatment is being given to the nuclear industry, a debate we have had in Ireland in which there has been much concern about Sellafield. This might be an opportune time to look at other forms of energy, particularly in the light of the Kyoto Protocol. Is there continuing support for alternative sources of energy?