Terry Leyden (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Kyne. As Fianna Fáil spokesperson for communications, climate change and natural resources, I must tell Senator O'Sullivan that unfortunately we cannot support the amendment for the simple reason that it would not keep with the Bill and could delay it being enacted. To be consistent, in February 2011 onshore petroleum licence options for the north-west area were granted by the then Fianna Fáil-led Government. However, exploration drilling, including drilling that would involve hydraulic fracturing, was not allowed under these licence options. This is backed up by replies to parliamentary questions, which I am happy to share with interested parties. Enormous work has been done on the Love Leitrim campaign over six years by all of the councillors and Oireachtas Members, and I welcome Councillor Mary Bohan who is in the Gallery. I also welcome Scott Coombs and Eddie Mitchell, Shane Coghlan of Friends of the Earth and many more, including representatives of Roscommon County Council and Leitrim County Council. This issue is included in the county development plan.

I commend the intelligence of getting a Government Deputy to sponsor a Private Members' Bill. I have been endeavouring to get a Bill through for some time, the Registration of Wills Bill, and every time I get so far, I am thwarted again by a change of either Government or Minister and it is practically impossible. Deputy Tony McLoughlin, a Fine Gael Deputy for Sligo-Leitrim, has tabled the Bill, with the support of Fianna Fáil and the Government. The Government's input was vital in this regard. If the Government wanted to block the Bill, it could easily have done so, but it has given much consideration to the Bill.

I appeal to Senator O'Sullivan to withdraw the amendment because she is going down a very dangerous path. There is no question of fracking being allowed offshore. It is a myth at this stage. There are no applications and nothing on the horizon. It is a different process. The onshore process is well tried and well practised. Nobody is closer to this than Councillor Bohan, because it started in her area and could have done damage to the River Shannon, tourism and the agricultural industry. It could have destroyed the clean air and clean water. Water is absolutely vital and there is no guarantee the water would not come down the River Shannon and pollute it, destroying fisheries and tourism. It was the most outrageous proposal on a small island. Fracking has happened in the United States of America and Britain. Fracking in the United Kingdom has resulted in mini earthquakes in areas, and this fact is well recorded, because it is such a small country compared to the vast areas of the United States of America.

We appreciate what the Senator is trying to do, and we sympathise with her situation, but I have been advised by the Fianna Fáil research office, which is well acquainted with this issue, that this would delay implementation of the Bill. If the amendment were accepted today, the Bill would have to go back to the Dáil and go through the entire process again. We would then have the adjournment for the summer recess and it would not be law before autumn. I reiterate that we support the Bill 100%. We would like to have introduced such a Bill ourselves, and we would have liked if a colleague such as Deputy Eamon Scanlon could have introduced it, but there was no point because the Government probably would not have gone along with it.

It is in a good area electorally for Roscommon and Leitrim. It looks like a Tullymandered constituency revision. It smacks of the biggest Tullymander since James Tully was there in Meath.