Feargal Quinn (Independent)

I will explain why I am raising this point. The three petrol stations on the Howth peninsula, which is a fairly large area, have all closed in the last eight weeks and they will not reopen. One cannot buy petrol there anymore. As I drove up the East Wall Road today I discovered that two petrol stations there have also closed. I am a great believer in competition and the fact that the free market will provide the economy with what we need. However, I cannot believe how many of the facilities we have grown used to as part of our normal way of life, particularly in rural Ireland, will be lost. If we are talking about losing rural post offices, rural Garda stations and petrol stations — perhaps because of competition——