Darragh O'Brien
Dublin Fingal East · Fianna Fáil · Ireland
“The appropriate next time to do that is once the ANCA decision is finalised and the public consultation is concluded, which will be on 3 September. Obviously, there will be a period required after that when the submissions to ANCA will be looked at. That is where the consultation is. That will happen over the coming months.”
“I have already mentioned the more than 3 million passengers who flew through Cork Airport and the growth of Shannon Airport, which has just had its best half a year and which now has over 40 routes. However, a small number of people are impacted and they need to be listened to.”
“Others did not want it at all. I think Shane Ross was Minister for transport at the time. That has been done. That is in place. This decision will be made. I do not have a timeframe. Hopefully it will be soon after the submissions from the public on the draft noise decision is made. That would feed into both.”
“An Investec report published in, I believe, 2022 said that to maintain the cap at 32 million between now and 2030 would jeopardise up to about 19,000 jobs. That is the reality of it. I support the workers in the airport. I am from the community myself. The airport has to grow in a sustainable way.”
“I have also made it clear that even though, and this is a fact, international aviation emissions are outside the scope of the climate action plan, we are taking actions aligned with the global approach to decarbonisation of the aviation industry, which is based on the International Civil Aviation Organization's basket of measures to ensur…”
“I have already highlighted the planning decision on the DAA’s infrastructure application. We discussed that at some length over the course of the last nearly two hours. That application seeks to raise the passenger cap to 40 million and provide for much-needed additional infrastructure at Dublin Airport.”
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“The summer works scheme is important for schools and there will unfortunately be some that fall outside the boundaries of it. I noted the announcement last week by the Department of education relating to moneys allocated through the climate action fund to allow energy upgrades for schools. Specifically on Our Lady's Girls National School, I will raise that matter directly with the Minister, Deputy Naughton, on Deputy Brennan's behalf and seek a written and direct response to him.”
“I will. I know how critical this project is for Galway and Galway city. It is a matter of regret that it has taken so long. It has taken so long for many reasons. We have had serial and continuous objectors to this critical piece of infrastructure. The Government wants to see this road built. It is critical for the city of Galway and the surrounding areas. Following the Deputy's intervention today, I will seek an update as to when we can expect a final decision on it. The Government supports the development of this critical piece of infrastructure for Galway.”
“The first question in relation to Lariam is probably more appropriate for a parliamentary question but I will raise the matter and seek a response for the Deputy. I do not have the details or the answer to hand on that. Each Minister travels and a Head of Government has to attend international events-----”
“-----to see him back. I have written to the NTA on this very specific issue - I mention friends, constituents of mine and, indeed, people across the country - in my role as Minister for Transport so I want to get to the bottom of this. I have asked the NTA to look at it. I attend the taxi forum. I attended just four or five months ago and I will be attending again this week. I do not have an answer back from the NTA yet. I wrote to it on 19 November. I was at COP30 last week but I will be chasing it up this week. I will be engaged with the taxi representative bodies on this matter. I want to see what the regulatory framework is for this. It is a concern to many taxi drivers, unquestionably, and I will be working on it-----”
“If we look at the early childhood care and education, ECCE, scheme nearly 98% of children are now participating in a scheme that did not exist 14 or 15 years ago.”
“With the young population that we have, it is important we support childcare services. I was in this House when a previous Government, in 2009 to 2010, brought in the early childhood care and education programme, ECCE. We see the advancement of that in terms of childcare right the way across the country since then. While it is fair to make constructive criticisms, it is also fair, by way of balance, to see where we have come from and where we are now. If you look at budget 2026, €1.48 billion was allocated for early learning and childcare. That is an increase of 9% on the previous year. Capital funding is rising as well, with 2,300 additional childcare places. The national childcare scheme supports 286,000 children.”
“We must make sure that the voices of the survivors and the victims are the most critical in this regard. Given their horrific experiences and the bravery that they have shown, it behoves us to do everything we can.”
“I agree with the Deputy. I mentioned in my opening remarks earlier on during Leaders' Questions that all us share responsibility in this House but also outside the House, and that includes corporate bodies and our education system. Our teachers and our other educators are doing a lot of work in this regard from a very young age, particularly in relation to boys' and young men's attitudes towards sex, pornography and the normalisation of pornography. Certainly, the ability of companies such as Shein to sell these types of product is of concern. I know it is of concern to the Minister as well. I have noted that other countries have taken steps to ban this, too. It has to be a zero-tolerance approach. Now it is about continuing on that path of the progress that has been made. I listened to Deputy Mary Lou McDonald.”
“To deal with the important matter that the Deputy raised, I know Sinn Féin has legislation in that regard. I outlined earlier on some of the measures that the Government was taking on this important and critical issue. I will certainly discuss Sinn Féin's Private Members' Bill with the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, and will revert directly to the Deputy in relation to how the Government proposes to approach that. In fairness, everyone in this House is trying to work on this important issue in a unified way. It is critical that we do that. I assure the Deputy that we are minded of the voices of victims and survivors. Moving on to the Deputy's first point, I thank her again for her concern as to the Taoiseach's travel. I will make an important point. The Taoiseach is representing the Government. I said that earlier on.”
“The Deputy asked whether we are satisfied with the legal advice we received which the Taoiseach read in this House. Of course we are. The Deputy has an opportunity tomorrow morning to raise specific points around his motion. As I said to him in my initial answer, this whole area is something that remains under review both at EU and national level. We want to make sure the process is fair and transparent and that protection is given to whistleblowers, which, in the main, it is. That is important. The Department of Finance will be taking this debate tomorrow. We look forward to the arguments that will be put forward in that regard. We are always open to looking at matters, whereby if there are improvements required that are legal, and we will do so. We look forward to the debate tomorrow morning.”
“A major amendment to that Act was made in 2022. It was signed into law in July 2022 and commenced operation on 1 January. This is an area that we take seriously. I look forward to the debate tomorrow morning in relation to the Independent Technical Group's motion, where the Deputy can put forward other matters relating to it. Whistleblowers in general have done this State a great service. They have raised matters that would not have come to the fore if we had not had the structures and processes in place to allow that to happen. A whistleblower should not find, in any way, shape or form, that their own situation is affected in a negative way simply because they have raised a protected disclosure that they feel is of great importance to the operation of their Department or agency or to behaviour within an agency or Department.”
“The role whistleblowers have is critically important and they deserve the protection of the State. On the Deputy's contention that a Minister should have the opportunity to read protected disclosures, while I understand the intention, it is flawed. The political process needs to be separate from that. There is a clear process in relation to that. Every Minister gets a general report on protected disclosures, which is important too. There has to be an independent verifiable process for whistleblowers to be able to have the allegations or matters they have raised assessed in an independent way, separate from the line Minister, and where the whistleblower can feel it can be raised in safety and assessed with seriousness. The Protected Disclosures Act 2014 is our national whistleblowers protection law.”
“We are committed as a Government to protecting whistleblowers. Work is ongoing at EU and national level to further strengthen those reports. The Deputy has a Private Members' motion tomorrow morning, I think, on this matter. We will get an opportunity to debate it in the round. We accept the motion tabled by Independent Deputies is well intentioned and seeks to increase protections for whistleblowers but, from an initial review, it appears to ignore many of the provisions that already exist in legislation to protect those individuals. It also contains a number of proposals which would have to be worked on in more detail and may have some unintended consequences too. We have set some of those concerns out in the countermotion, alongside our ongoing commitment to further review the legislation at both EU and national level.”
“This is something we have to continue to work on. I just want to assure the Deputy it is an absolute priority for both the Minister for justice and the Government.”
“On the counselling notes, the Minister will bring forward amending legislation towards the end of this year or very early next year. That will be brought forward. I outlined in my first answer to the Deputy the other measures we are taking by way of legislation. As she raised, it is critically important that there be safe places for victims to go. The Government and I agree with her that more needs to be done there. However, the plan is for 52 new family refuge units, 45 new safe homes and 50 new units to be under construction, all by the end of next year. I have visited the new refuge in Wexford, which is excellent. Work is advancing on projects in the nine counties she mentioned, one of them in north County Dublin. I am very aware of what is happening there in relation to new refuge spaces.”
“The Minister also secured Government approval on 22 October to progress the criminal law (sexual offences, domestic violence and international instruments) Bill 2025, which includes measures to allow perpetrators of domestic violence to be included on a new register to be run by the courts and to strengthen the law around sexual consent. Convictions will be published online by the Courts Service under a specific heading of "domestic violence registered judgments". I am acutely aware, as is the Government, that we need to continue the focus on this area and that there must be a zero-tolerance approach to violence against women.”
“Parents and guardians have to be very open about having these discussions at a very young age. I speak in this regard from experience of being a dad. We need to have those types of discussions. It is important that the Government underpins the measures we have with funding. We have increased funding to almost €80 million in budget 2026. That is to support Cuan and the services working to tackle domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. The establishment of a specific agency to deal with this was critically important. The Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, is also looking to introduce legislative change, including, under the proposed guardianship of infants (amendment) Bill, to allow for the removal of guardianship rights from persons convicted of killing their intimate partner.”
“Fundamentally, and I agree with the Deputy on this, the fact that many women, and young ladies as well, do not feel safe at night and have to change their behaviour and habits insofar as where they go, where they run and whether they use head phones, is not what we want our country to be. Unfortunately, this is not unique to Ireland. We have a responsibility, as a collective here in the Oireachtas, to work together on this very serious issue, and to work societally as well. Significant education is required. The Deputy mentioned online content and she is right. The normalisation of pornography among young men, in particular, is a really worrying trend. This is something that can be addressed through our education system and schools and through our families as well.”
“I thank Deputy Cairns for raising this very serious and important matter. I read the transcripts of the court case and it is absolutely horrific. I want to commend the bravery of that young lady. I have a 17-year-old daughter. I cannot imagine what she and her family are going through. There should be no tolerance of violence against women, and there is no tolerance of it. That is why the Government's strategy of zero tolerance is so critical. The Minister, Deputy Jim O'Callaghan, has been advancing some very specific measures in that regard. Jennie's law and Valerie's law are advancing, too. The establishment of Cuan by the previous Government was absolutely critical. As a former housing Minister, I was involved in the third national strategy. We need to make sure the supports are there for people.”
“We will continue to target measures at those who need them most as we are expanding our renewables. On the work in relation to the affordability task force, we published our interim report and implemented measures like the 9% VAT rate and the expansion of the fuel allowance straight away. There will be further measures coming through in 2026.”
“We will obviously ensure the measures we have brought forward are implemented. On retrofitting alone, we have retrofitted nearly 230,000 homes across the country. That is scaling up every single year. As I said, we will do about 64,500 this year. They are permanent changes for households to ensure they can bring down their energy costs. There is the issue of the energy markets and the cost on the wholesale markets and the fact that our retail prices struck at the wholesale gas price even though we are accelerating renewables. That is a matter I have raised at every European Council meeting I have attended. At COP just last week, we introduced into the discussion the affordability piece for households because it is a real issue for households.”
“That will be critical to reducing our dependence on fossil fuels, particularly imported fossil fuels, where we are at the mercy of the vagaries of the market. The Deputy knows how the energy markets work. We are purchasing forward and a lot of our companies are. I insisted - I asked the energy companies - to make sure those hardship funds were brought back in place, and they are in place. No one can or will be disconnected through the course of this winter either. I say to people who are in arrears that there is assistance from the State, they should contact their energy providers and we can work through measures with them. Our work on that is not concluded.”
“-----64,500 households that will be retrofitted this year. Next year, we are providing €558 million through the carbon tax receipts to put that directly into homes and small businesses to reduce their energy costs. The IEA has said it, not me, that those cost savings are between €900 and €1,200 on average per annum. Permanent changes for households, that is what we need. We need to expand renewables as well. The Deputy is correct in saying that. I have said that, too. Last year, over 40% of our electricity was generated through renewables. We have had a further successful auction in relation to solar and wind energy and we are within grasp of becoming energy sovereign in the next ten years.”
“Jobs underpin this and it is the hard work of the State and the people that ensures we can have the resources to support our people through difficult times, as we did through Covid and as we did through the cost-of-living crisis, which was acute post the outbreak of the war in Ukraine. We now have to look at measures we are taking, particularly on energy, that are permanent. Deputy Bacik skipped over retrofitting. On retrofitting alone, we are looking at-----”
“I will answer the Deputy's questions. Energy affordability is critical and I am glad Deputy Bacik raised the point. I have already answered Deputy Mary Lou McDonald. If we look at the measures that have been taken in the budget, they are targeted measures. They are very targeted across all areas, not just energy. If we look at social welfare rate increases, the renter's tax credit and the mortgage interest relief payments as well, all of those are targeted at people and are significant. It is unquestionably a very significant budget for people. We have got to keep the economy going as well and support the jobs that are there also.”
“The Deputy is opposed to carbon tax. The carbon tax is invested in people's households to bring about permanent changes to their homes, permanent affordability measures and permanent health measures to their homes. This year 60,000 homes will be retrofitted.”
“That is true. Let us leave the politics piece out of it. I can say to families out there that the Government and the State will work with them right the way through this winter to bring about permanent affordability measures. I have mentioned retrofitting.”
“I have answered the Deputy's question directly. For many families, it is not easy and the State is there to support them. That is why we have expanded the social protection measures that are targeted at those who need them. The Deputy made no reference to that. Again, it is in stark contrast to what her colleagues are doing in the North in relation to helping with fuel bills. The fuel allowance payment in the North of Ireland is between €113 and €340. The Deputy probably knows, but she will not say it here today, that it is only available to those over 66 years of age in the North where Sinn Féin holds the finance Ministry. In the South, the fuel allowance is worth about €924 per annum.”
“In relation to the carbon tax, the Deputy has not referred to how the carbon tax that relates to home heating oil has been deferred until May 2026. The carbon tax gives us the capital to bring about permanent affordability measures for families. We are targeting 60,000 retrofits in 2025 alone and €558 million next year in retrofits. That is delivering about a third in savings on average, according to the International Energy Agency, IEA. Those are not my statistics but the IEA's statistics. These are permanent changes for households, including schemes like the warmer homes scheme, which provides a 100% grant to fully retrofit homes, bring renewables to those homes, make them warmer and healthier, and bring about permanent savings for those households. We will continue to look at all of the measures on affordability.”
“All four of the main providers have confirmed again to me at my request that hardship funds will be set up. I say to people who are in arrears that the State is there to support them through the fuel allowance payments, and no one will be cut off. I have again had that confirmed at my request. People will work with providers through this winter period. The reality is that we are still far too dependent on imported fossil fuel. That is why we need to expand renewables across the country. That is why 41% of our electricity last year was generated through renewable sources. We will continue to expand that - our own energy, in respect of which we are sovereign and we can control - and reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.”
“I have met Caoimhe Archibald and Liz Kimmins. All of the Deputy's colleagues in the North are taking the right position. They want to see this delivered. What do we do in the meantime? As regards energy, we unquestionably have affordability issues. That is why we established the national energy affordability task force. We have brought forward interim measures already. That work is continuing and we will publish a report in 2026 looking at some permanent measures that we can change. What the Deputy has not referred to either is the Eurostat report, published just last week, that shows Ireland as mid-ranking now with European colleagues in relation to energy affordability. However, for many households, these bills are expensive and some struggle to pay them. That is why I met the energy providers.”
“-----the extension and expansion of renewables into our grid, a project that Deputy McDonald's party seems to be flip-flopping on north of the Border. I have met her party's ministers in the North of Ireland, who are for the project; its Deputies in the South are opposed to it. This is a permanent measure that will deliver affordability.”
“That is because we believe that the €3.5 billion that was used there at the appropriate time is more appropriate to go into structural measures such as investing in our grid and in grid capacity. We have also provided equity of €3.5 billion to EirGrid and ESBN. That will allow them to finance the investment that is required in our grid in projects like the North-South interconnector, that one project that will deliver resilience for our grid and will allow-----”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta as ucht na ceiste ar an ábhar tábhachtach seo ach ní aontaím léi ar chor ar bith. I do not agree with her at all. The measures that have been taken in the budget are targeted to help those who need them most, particularly in the area of social protection. We have increased the fuel allowance substantially and expanded it to about 460,000 households right across the country. The Deputy has ignored that, one of the most significant changes we have made. Another change, on foot of the interim report of the national energy affordability task force, is the effective permanent reduction of VAT from 13.5% to 9% on gas and electricity, bringing about a saving of over €100 per annum for households, a permanent change. Yes, the Deputy is correct that we have not extended the energy credits.”
“I have not covered every matter raised here but I have taken note of all of them. Senator Boyhan asked for a briefing document on the community benefit fund. Communities are critical in this and in respect of renewables it is crucial that there are community benefit funds that work for people. We will provide that briefing note in advance of Committee and remaining Stages next week. I genuinely thank Senators for their interest and input. I have taken note of the points that have been raised and look forward to concluding this piece of work next week.”
“The point was made by a couple of Senators about how we can oversee the delivery of this. Price review 6 will be like a capital plan. It will be project based. Our challenge will be to deliver it all, to be frank. Thankfully we are in an economic position, thanks to the hard work of our citizens and good economic management by successive Governments, where we can provide equity investments through the ICNF and by using the surpluses we have had over the period to invest in infrastructure like the grid. Because we are giving the equity investment, it means there is less requirement for borrowing. The credit rating of ESB has been mentioned. It is a very strong rating but after this was announced, it increased from A- positive to A positive. That will reduce the cost of borrowing. This is good.”
“All Senators, including Senators Dee Ryan, Duffy, Scahill, Collins, Cosgrove, Stephenson and Cathal Byrne, raised the resilience issue. We saw what Storm Éowyn, Storm Darragh and others did and the impact they had. These weather events are far more prevalent, as Senator Clifford-Lee said in her opening remarks. We have to invest in the resilience of our grid system. That requires tens of thousands of pole replacements, new energy infrastructure in the form of cabling and so on. We are not on our own in this. At the Energy Council, when I am discussing matters with other energy and environment ministers across Europe, it is clear that all of Europe is investing in the grid. Europe's grid in the main is about 40 years old. In some countries it is even older, so this type of grid replacement is needed. Thankfully, price review 5 was done.”
“There has been debate suggesting it was either data centres or housing but that is not correct. I do know of the instance of those 80 homes. There was a delay on the ground there. There is no grid constraint with regard to housing connection. The constraint in some areas has been down to administrative issues but it is not just that. We do have a dispersed way of living in Ireland, too. I get the point Senator Cathal Byrne has raised about how long it takes for connections to one-off housing. Senators will also know how long it took in some areas, particularly rural areas, to reconnect post Storm Éowyn, because our grid is incredibly dispersed, particularly compared with European colleagues. That is a reality of how we live. We are looking at other mechanisms there.”
“A lot of the large energy users and data holders here are among the biggest companies investing here, employing people in good jobs and paying them. The idea we can turn around and say we do not want this is not something I would stand over. To be fair to Government parties and our Independent colleagues, we have been very clear in the programme for Government that we want a plan-led approach and we want to continue to enable new data to be located in Ireland. Price review 6, which will be published next month by the CRU, takes into account that future industrial growth, not just in data centres but economic growth, and also underpins the investment required to deliver the 300,000-plus houses we plan to build between now and the end of the decade. It is not one or the other.”
“It is not a criticism but just based on an analysis of that model, but I would not be inclined to follow it. We will deal with any proposed amendments next Tuesday. They will certainly be debated. There has been a discussion around large energy users and data centres, too. I expect the large energy users policy to be published shortly, because it does need to be planned out. That is going to be very important. The Government is positive on data and new data. We have to be at the cutting edge of new technologies, particularly around AI and what comes next. We are in a fortunate position, I would say. Our colleague from the Social Democrats was quite critical of the number of data centres. That is foreign direct investment in this country, underpinning tens of thousands of jobs.”
“Electrification and further electrification of our grid will lead to lower prices, reducing our dependence on fossil and imported gas in particular. As we know, Corrib is a diminishing supply. It is a fossil fuel that will diminish and will probably not provide any additional gas after 2035 or 2040. About 70% to 80% of our gas then comes through the pipelines from Scotland. That is a risk but it is a dependency on fossil. Thankfully, renewables are scaling up. We are the best in Europe at integration of renewables into the grid, notwithstanding some valid points that Senators from Opposition parties have made. This is trying to be useful, but if Senator Collins does a quick Google of the Dutch energy system - she referred to ACM - she will see the severe difficulties they have with grid congestion in Holland right now.”
“We did bring forward measures supported by the Senator and Government colleagues in respect of immediate measures. We published the national energy affordability task force interim report, and brought forward things like the 9% VAT rate, a permanent change up to 2030. It saves about €100 per annum, which is not insignificant, and it means we do not have to go back every year. That has been agreed. There is the expansion of the increased fuel allowance, a very targeted payment to about 460,000 households, to recipients of the working family payment, about another 50,000 households. I have engaged directly with the energy providers. I met the four largest providers myself and will be meeting the remainder. At my request, they have all agreed to re-establish hardship funds, which is good. The energy providers need to play their part too.”
“I thank all Senators for their contributions. There are general points and a large degree of commonality within specific points. First, I thank Senators for their support and understand about the urgent nature of this legislation to be passed. Senator Clifford-Lee said that this investment will enable the development of critical infrastructure to underpin the NDP delivery across all our different areas of delivery. She is absolutely correct that we have to look at transport, housing, water infrastructure - all of those various things. Like other Senators, she also raised the point about affordability. Ireland's energy prices for consumers are too high. We are working on that through the national energy affordability task force. We are about the eighth highest in Europe for electricity. It is not where we want to be.”
“ESB management has advised my Department that ESB employees are supportive of both the equity investment by the Government and the ambitious investment plan we are about to embark under PR6. I commend the Bill to the House. I look forward to the debate. I am interested in the input of my colleagues here in Seanad Éireann.”
“The new section 2(6) provides for the procedure for the Minister for Finance to make payment to the ESB up to the value of €1.5 billion for capital stock from the Central Fund and the new section 2(7) enables the ESB to issue stock to the employee share ownership plan, ESOP, in return for payment should the trustees choose to invest in the ESB to maintain their current shareholding percentage. The ESOP will have a period of up to 12 months following Government investment to make its investment. At present the State's shareholding in the ESB stands at 97.4%. The ESOP holds 2.6%. Should the ESOP choose not to participate in the equity investment, the State shareholding will obviously increase.”
“Section 2 amends section 4 of the Electricity (Supply) (Amendment) Act 1954 to provide for the increase of the statutory borrowing limit of the ESB from €12 billion to €17 billion. This increase is necessary to support the potential €15.2 billion expenditure by ESB Networks from 2026 to 2030. Section 3 amends section 2 of the Electricity (Supply) (Amendment) Act 2001 through the insertion of new subsections. The new section 2(5) provides for the issuance of capital stock by the ESB in return for payment up to the value of €1.5 billion. Some 90% of such stock shall be issued to the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation and 10% shall be issued to the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment.”
“The investment will also support the strength of the ESB's balance sheet and ultimately assist it in maintaining its excellent credit ratings. While the investment does not directly lower current customer electricity bills, it will maintain that strong credit rating, which ensures the ESB can borrow at the most competitive interest rates, which ultimately lowers the impact of network charges on customer bills. It is also important to note that the State will continue to receive dividends in proportion to its shareholding. On a separate but important issue, legal consideration has determined that this equity investment does not give rise to any issues with regard to state aid. I will briefly outline the subject matter of the Bill.”
“This programme plan will be financed by debt issuance on the bond market, supported by the Government's equity investment, which I am bringing forward today, and ESB Network's regulated income, as approved by the CRU. It will see the delivery of over 500 capital projects across transmission and distribution networks. This includes 181 km of new overhead lines, 319 km of new underground cables, nearly 70 new and upgraded substations right across the country and 50,000 pole replacements. ESB Networks will expand, modernise and reinforce our onshore electricity network infrastructure. Without Government equity investment, the ESB would be unable to deliver such an extensive and rapid programme of work in the five-year period to 2030.”
“This work needs to be concluded by the end of this calendar year to ensure payment from the Government's Central Fund, as approved under the NDP, and to ensure the ESB is sufficiently financed prior to 2026 to begin delivery of the ambitious programme I have just touched on. Given the urgency of the investment, I wrote to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Climate, Environment and Energy to seek a waiver from pre-legislative scrutiny. I thank the committee for granting that waiver following a technical briefing provided by officials from the Department, who are here with me today. I am also seeking a motion for early signature in respect of the President's signature of the Bill. The €1.5 billion equity investment in the ESB will support its ability to finance the overall investment programme I have already referred to.”
“Some €2 billion will be invested in EirGrid to support the financing of its offshore grid investment plans. I refer not just to the offshore renewable electricity support scheme, ORESS, 1 projects that are in planning right now, but also to getting EirGrid into a situation where it can leverage that to invest in the offshore grid. A further €1.5 billion will be invested in ESB to support the financing of its onshore grid investment plans. EirGrid's equity investment mechanism will be agreed and legislated for separately next year whereas the investment in the ESB is required by the end of this year. That is why I am here today for Second Stage.”