Joe O'Toole (Independent)

I welcome the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Deputy Roche, to the House. The particularly strong language of the motion is to be welcomed also, encompassing as it does a clear commitment from the Government. I am happy to support it. The most worrying aspect of Sellafield is that the problem cannot be solved in our lifetimes. No matter what we do, there will still be a difficulty there for another 150 years, according to the recent survey referred to by Senator Brennan. The concern is that an accident at Sellafield followed by an easterly wind would bring the sort of destruction here that we saw in the Ukraine in 1986. If that happened our food chain would be contaminated for decades, if not for generations.

I know the Minister shares my worry that every time someone undertakes a safety survey at Sellafield, they come out with an extraordinarily optimistic view that they will now implement 24,000 new safety measures. Senators will excuse my exaggeration in this respect. Every time such a safety survey takes place, however, I wonder how dangerous Sellafield was before and how dangerous it will be in future. Is it getting safer or will it always be dangerous?

I do not know the answer to questions that have been raised about the risk of cancer from Sellafield. I have heard the various arguments reflecting different views. There are those who say that Sellafield is a safe issue for Irish politicians and, so, it is easy for them to take a hard line on it. That is the line I take, and I make no apologies for doing so.

Will the Minister examine the possibility of undertaking a survey of Sellafield's possible impact on disease and illness? Are the stories about Sellafield's carcinogenic effects correct and, if so, where do we go from here? There is no economic argument to justify the continuation of Sellafield.