Brendan Kenneally (Fianna Fail)

I hope our descendants, however, will be in good health, free from nuclear risk and certainly not at the mercy of the management regime of a death factory which has, to be kind, a history of inefficiency, ineptitude and deceit.

We know and accept that we have one of the greatest threats to this country's health and safety on our doorstep, a prime target for terrorist attack. That is not exaggeration or scaremongering but a realistic assessment of the situation with which we are presented. We do not accept that this should be so and we must regularly place on record our opposition to it, our desire that remedial action be taken and ultimately, sooner rather than later, that the site should be closed, cleaned and made safe.

We have some idea of the scale of the battle facing our Government today. It is, and will continue to be, difficult for our Government to make inroads on this problem while the private financial stakes are so high. I commend the efforts of the Taoiseach in raising this issue with the British Government and his forthrightness in pointing out the risks for us. I also commend the outspoken, independent and courageous stance of the Minister for Foreign Affairs, who knows better than most the risks for us all, especially those who live on the east coast. I am not naïve enough to think that this problem can be solved overnight but I am confident that our Government will keep this matter high on its agenda with its British counterparts.

I subscribe fully to the intent and aspirations of the motion before us this evening. I accept the points made therein and wholeheartedly support every Government attempt to keep the single biggest national risk at the top of the international agenda and to seek, in the words of the motion, "full disclosure from the UK authorities of all information relevant to accidents, malfunctions, unauthorised disclosures and lapses in safety procedures" and the other elements of the motion.