Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)

In response to Senators Ryan and Hanafin, the analogy they used is very good, in that Airtricity has access to the ESB distribution grid wires. In the space of a 30-second telephone call, one can change one's customer relation while retaining all the same systems, including metering, local wires and everything else, which are given as access to a competitor. This works well in the public interest to encourage competition and reduce prices. Yes, a Green Party Minister is willing in the public interest to try to keep prices down and to get better services. Moreover, in this instance unless we do this and were we simply to keep to business as usual in the postal service, I ultimately would fear for the workers there because we cannot continue on a business as usual basis. The postal service needs a new business model, new income streams and new enterprise opportunities and they can come-----