asked the Minister for Energy the number of accidents which have occurred at British nuclear installations so far this year; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

34.

asked the Minister for Energy the total number of accidents or incidents involving discharges of radioactive material at British nuclear power stations or other British nuclear institutions reported to his Department by the British authorities since the beginning of this year; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 34 and 44 together. Under informal procedures agreed at meetings of the Ireland-UK Contact Group on Nuclear Matters, my Department are informed promptly of all incidents at British nuclear installations which are notified to the UK Department of the Environment whether or not they resulted in discharges of radioactivity. As such incidents are reported on an informal basis and in confidence, I am not at liberty to disclose details. I am satisfied that the contact group and the notification procedure are a significant improvement in our arrangements generally.

Am I to understand from the Minister's reply that the Irish public, in his view, are not entitled to know of the accident record of these plants against whom we propose to take legal action?

There is an informal arrangement operating at present which ensures that all these accidents, whether involving discharges of radioactivity or not, are brought to our notice at the same time as they are brought to the notice of the Department of the Environment in the UK. In a great number of those cases that have been brought to our notice in the past, there were no radioactive discharges at all. The practice seems to be changing and only the ones that are being reported to us are the ones that would involve the discharge of radioactivity.

Has the Minister appointed a member of his staff to become involved in the preparation of the court case against the UK?

We have been having discussions for a very long time with the Attorney General in relation to this whole matter. The Government view with the greatest concern developments in Sellafield, on the west coast of the UK and in Wales, but no final decision has been taken in relation to a court action. A very considerable examination has to be done on this matter and the final decision will be taken when deemed appropriate.

Will this information, which I sought in this question, not be some of the key presentation by the Irish in the court case? Is it not unreasonable to suggest that this is in confidence? This will be in open court and surely the level of threat involved in these UK plants should be a matter of public record.

If it ever gets to court.

If this evidence were to be used in court in the future, the Deputy, in trying to have it made available now, would only ultimately frustrate the very development which he wants to bring about.

Is it not the case that the British MPs get this very information from their Department of the Environment that the Minister here, despite having it in his Department, is refusing to give us as TDs who are immediately affected?

I have already given my reply to the House. I believe that most people, if not everybody in this House, are equally concerned with this matter. It is something which affects the health of the people of this country. It affects our seas. We can have a certain amount of political upmanship and a desire to extract information which may tend to embarrass the Government or otherwise. In the final analysis the Government have to protect the interests of this country and decide what is the appropriate action at a given time. It is not something that we can play around with or on which we can give information which we consider would be unhelpful to our case in the final analysis.

Who makes that decision?

You promised before the election that you would take the UK to court.

We have been over that ground so many times.

That disposes of questions, both ordinary and priority, for today.