I support Senator Marc MacSharry’s amendment to the Order of Business to allow for a debate on the pylons issue. What have the people of County Meath done to the Government that means they are treated as second-class citizens? What is going on is outrageous. Deputies in County Meath have shown themselves to be completely powerless and supine to whatever is going on. We now have these Deputies reduced to pleading with a retired Supreme Court judge to include County Meath in her review. This review is the Government’s baby and such pressure on a Supreme Court judge is wrong and unfair. This is a Cabinet decision. The buck stops with the Taoiseach and the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Deputy Pat Rabbitte. We are not second-class citizens in County Meath and will not be taken as such. There is uproar and consternation in the county about this. I am sure it is the same in County Cavan.

As well as counties Monaghan and Laois.

I have councillors from Cavan and Monaghan phoning me about this review. There is uproar there, too. They feel they are second-class citizens. It is as if the Government is saying “We do not care. Push ahead”. The question is why. Is it to do with the wind farm projects going ahead in County Meath, which are also causing consternation? Is private business pushing this agenda to get this project through County Meath? The Cabinet’s decision on a review yesterday morning was a disgrace and outrageous. The people of counties Meath, Cavan and Monaghan will not forget this action by the Government.

Two weeks ago I suggested in the House that we have a forum to discuss pylons, overhead and underground cables, their advantages and disadvantages, a forum similar to the hearings we had with outside experts on the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill.

I welcome the Minister’s announcement of the setting up of an expert independent panel to oversee and prepare a report on all aspects of the Grid Link and Grid Link West projects. The running of the North-South interconnector through counties Meath and Monaghan should also be considered by this expert group. Planning permission has not been granted for the interconnector. This should be considered by the expert group and planning permission should be delayed. Up to 35,000 submissions have been received in the pylon consultation process. It is only right and proper that all of these are taken into the expert group’s deliberations.