Brendan Daly (Fianna Fail)

I share Senator Finucane's concern about the possibility of a dispute in the ESB and its potential to seriously damage power supplies and the power network. Long-established procedures for dealing with such circumstances should be applied immediately to avert a dispute. It appears a small group of people, a maverick outfit, intends to disrupt power supplies. While I am not sure what Ministers can do in this regard, agreed procedures are in place in the ESB group of unions to deal with such matters. Every effort should be made to avoid a dispute which would create power difficulties at a time when we cannot afford them.

The debate on the State Airports Bill should help to clarify matters and allay the fears of many people in the regions, especially Shannon, about the proposed changes and their future employment. Irrespective of our views on the detail of the Bill, it will be useful to debate it in the House because there is serious anxiety in Shannon about the impact not only of the legislation but also of changes I raised yesterday with regard to SFADCo. The opportunity to debate the legislation in the House may allay people's fears about the future.