Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am not pleased and it raises more issues than anything else. I reiterate that we are in favour of the general thrust of the Bill. Who will own the network if there is a PPP scenario where investment is coming from outside into this development? That is the real issue. The Minister indicated that ownership of the network might be shared between State and private enterprise in the new venture. We are calling for the State network to remain within the ownership of the ESB.

The Minister talks about weathering the storm for five years. People are concerned that the Uisce Éireann scenario means the water network could be privatised in future. We have seen parts of Bord Gáis for sale on the public market. People know about the Telecom Éireann debacle, which happened under a previous Administration and led us to the current debacle in respect of broadband. That is why genuine fears exist. If the Minister is saying I should not be concerned because the ESB will remain in State ownership, but that there is private investment in the project, is it possible that the network is not fully in State ownership and we will not own it fully any more? If so, I would be concerned.