Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister and acknowledge his engagement with the House and with the issues we raised. I appreciate his interest and his genuine effort to grapple with the issues. He is proactive in these areas. This Bill was not initiated in this House but I was happy that major legislation from the Department was initiated here, namely, the Broadcasting Bill 2008. I hope it will set a precedent and that we will have legislation initiated in this House regularly, which is important. My party did not obstruct the passage of the legislation in any way in either the Dáil or Seanad because we are committed to the establishment of the North-South and east-west interconnectors. We are concerned about security of electricity supply, the move towards renewable energy, the access of such sources of energy to the national grid and reducing the cost of electricity to improve the competitiveness of the economy and the well-being of individual users.

The legislation facilitates EirGrid to proceed with the necessary borrowing to develop the interconnector. I thank the Cathaoirleach for his management of the debate. I appeal to the Minister not to close his mind to undergrounding and to examine openly and objectively the report of the independent commission without a fixed view. Research and the technical development is ongoing. This is an evolving sphere and nothing is set in stone. Where it is possible to engage in undergrounding, that should be achieved. The Minister should also factor in issues such as the impact on tourism and the environment and the devaluation of property to the cost of overgrounding. It does not come down only to the construction cost. The Minister should examine this in a holistic way, wisely and courageously, in order not to disconnect from the people and to underground where possible.