Michael Finucane (Fine Gael)

Last weekend I attended a meeting in my own area concerning the Rossport five issue. One would have to be moved by the family members who were present. It is worth bearing in mind that the five men concerned have now been in jail for over 90 days. Yesterday the Joint Committeeon Communications, Marine and Natural Resources had a meeting for over three hours on this issue with the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Deputy Noel Dempsey. Many members were pretty upset that we have reached an impasse such that the five people are still in jail.

On the basis of the information that has been furnished, many of the developments concerning the offshore gas, including those associated with planning, seem to have proceeded very rapidly, and in the indecent haste defects have arisen. In this context, I hope the Minister will see some chink through which he can approach Shell to find a way to overcome the impasse and ensure the injunction is lifted. I hope he will allow decent dialogue to take place to determine whether we can solve this problem. For many people this issue has become a question of the "multinational versus the small man". It is very regrettable that it has arisen. The people concerned — innocent people from the west — may soon be facing 100 days in jail. It behoves the multinational company, Shell, which this State has accommodated considerably by way of granting it concessions, to try to give something back to remove the impasse that exists.