Fine Gael last night challenged Minister for the Environment John Gormley to support its motion opposing the proposed Poolbeg incinerator in his Dublin South East constituency.
Fine Gael environment spokesman Fergus O'Dowd recalled that last year Mr Gormley had presented to the House a well-thought, well-presented Green Party motion attacking incineration and specifically called on the then Minister to use his powers and scrap the Poolbeg incinerator.
"Now he stands before us, and in his most brazen act of duplicity, seeks to oppose a motion he himself tabled 12 months ago," Mr O'Dowd added.
"Minster, I challenge you to talk about the incinerator now and your position. Where is your determination, where is your grit, where is your ability to stand up to Fianna Fáil?" Your cop-out is spectacular and has sold your voters and all those in and near Poolbeg down the river."
Mr O'Dowd said that the Government had no mandate to proceed with the incinerator. "Over 300,000 people voted for candidates who pledged not to support it. Those candidates include the former minister for justice [ Michael McDowell] and the current Minister for the Environment," he added.
Mr Gormley insisted that he had not agreed to any incinerator. His Fine Gael constituency colleague Lucinda Creighton responded: "Why did you not demand in your programme for government that you stop the incinerator? Why did you not make it a crunch issue in your programme for government?" Dublin South East Labour TD Ruairí Quinn said he was appalled by Mr Gormley's speech. "Minister, I never thought I would see you so soon reduced to such capitulation. I never believed that the passion which animated your 25 years in public life would be so run over in such a short time by the mandarins in the Custom House," he added.
Mr Gormley insisted that his position was "well known, entirely consistent and second-to-none". He added that as Minister for the Environment, he must act under, and be respectful of, restrictions placed on him by primary legislation enacted by the Oireachtas. He said the Fine Gael motion conveniently ignored the clear limitation to his powers under the Planning and Development Act.
The provision stated: "The Minister shall not exercise any power or control in relation to any particular case with which a planning authority or the board [ An Bord Pleanála] is or maybe concerned." He added that in the light of this provision, "it would be not appropriate for me to comment or interfere with this case which is before An Bord Pleanála".
The Opposition knew this, said Mr Gormley. The Poolbeg project was the subject of an application by Dublin City Council to An Bord Pleanála for planning permission and an oral hearing had just recently concluded.
Those restrictions on ministerial involvement were put in place by the Oireachtas for good reasons. "Many of us are old enough to remember the controversies surrounding past political involvement in the planning process," he added.
The House will vote on the Fine Gael motion tonight.
