asked the Minister for Energy the action which has been taken in regard to the Ardlough which sank off Wales last month and was carrying a container of low level radioactive material.

As soon as we became aware of the sinking of the Ardlough off the Welsh coast, officials from my Department and the Nuclear Energy Board contacted the UK authorities to assess the situation. The material was properly packaged and it became clear that it sank with the ship and was not in one of the containers which came loose from the ship's deck. There was therefore no danger to the Irish public from radioactive substances and no further action by my Department was necessary.

In view of the mis-information received in the past from these sources, is the Minister satisfied that the information he received from the British authorities is accurate and can be verified?

The sources were different from the usual sources because it was a marine rather than a nuclear matter. We are satisfied with the information and the Deputy can be assured that we keep these things closely monitored. We are happy with the information we got.