With the permission of the Ceann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 13, 14 and 15 together.
I would refer the Deputies to the recent statement I made concerning the Government's decision about the ESB nuclear project. That statement made it clear that special legislation dealing with the building of nuclear power stations in this country and providing, in particular, for the setting up of a special tribunal to hold a single comprehensive inquiry, in public, into all aspects of the ESB project will be introduced in the Dáil. While the precise terms of the Bill have not yet been settled, it is intended that the proposed inquiry will permit consideration of the environmental and planning aspects presently covered by the Planning Acts and the Water Pollution Act and also such matters as health, economics, safety and security. The necessity to provide for appeals to An Bord Pleanála will not, therefore, arise.
An inter-departmental committee comprising representatives at senior level of relevant Departments is being set up to assess the ESB nuclear proposals in detail, as well as investigating all other relevant aspects of the project such as energy demand forecasts and all alternative means of meeting this demand.
Three meetings of the inter-departmental committee have already taken place and it is my intention that the committee will report to me before the tribunal sits so that their report can be published and presented to the tribunal. The proposed tribunal will, of course, be free to consider evidence from other sources.