Conor Lenihan (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

The desire to provide for an appropriate level of public consultation in this Bill has been a common theme of the debate both here and in the Dáil. Having listened carefully to the views expressed by Members, I have proposed amending the Bill explicitly to require a formal public consultation process to be carried out by the commission when it is establishing the safety framework. While the Bill, as published, had envisaged that the commission would consult widely when developing the safety framework, it is now proposed to include a specific requirement that the commission carry out a formal public consultation when developing the safety framework. It is my view that the overall regulatory framework relating to upstream petroleum activities will now provide sufficient scope for any concerns members of the public might have to be addressed.