Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)

I indicated on Committee Stage that I would bring forward amendments to increase public access to information relevant to the safety compliance of petroleum undertakings. As part of this process, amendment No. 5 inserts a new provision in section 13P to require the CER to publish safety permits once such permits have been issued to petroleum undertakings. This will ensure the public will have sight of the permit that will allow petroleum undertakings to carry on a designated activity and any conditions imposed by the permit.

Amendment No. 9 which inserts a new section 13AC in Bill also has its origins in the Committee Stage debate and further increases the level of public access to documentation relevant to the safety assessment process. This new provision which is modelled on the system operated by the Health and Safety Authority in discharge of its obligations with respect to occupational safety requires petroleum undertakings which have been issued with a safety permit to make their approved safety case available to members of the public on request. Petroleum undertakings will be permitted to limit public access to information relating to industrial, commercial or personal confidentiality, public security and national defence. However, all of the data contained in the safety case which, in fact, constitutes the safety management system to be operated by the petroleum undertaking will be accessible to members of the public. In line with other access to information legislation, petroleum undertakings will also be allowed to charge a reasonable fee for making such information available. Notwithstanding this, it should be noted that access to information can only be limited with the written consent of the CER and determination of a reasonable charge will be subject to direction by the commission. This will make the regulatory authority the final arbiter in each respect.

I do not propose to accept amendment No. 1 to amendment No. 9, proposed by Senators Donohoe and Cummins, because the Bill does not actually provide for an application to the CER for a safety permit. The process envisaged by the Bill is that petroleum undertakings will submit a safety case in respect of a single designated petroleum activity or a range of designated petroleum activities to the CER. The safety case is, in effect, a demonstration of the petroleum undertaking's proposed safety management systems in accordance with the requirements of the safety framework and the safety case guidelines relevant to the activity or activities in question. Should the commission be satisfied that the requirements of both the safety framework and the safety case guidelines have been met to the desired standard, it will issue a safety permit, subject to whatever conditions it considers appropriate. The safety permit which signals approval of the safety case will allow the petroleum undertaking to legally carry on a designated petroleum activity in accordance with the approved safety case and subject to any conditions attached to the safety permit. The amendments I propose will provide a basis for access to both the safety permit and the safety case the permit is approving.