It is important to be absolutely clear that a wind farm is no small undertaking. These are vast developments that have an enormous impact on communities and the local environment from the moment construction begins throughout their entire lifetime up to the day they are decommissioned. It is beyond me that for projects of this scale we have no up-to-date regulations or guidelines. Frankly speaking, it is an insult to communities across Ireland that have been left high and dry by the Minister of State and her colleagues. I am talking about communities like Oldleighlin, Castlewarren, Durrow, Kilmanagh, Tullaroan, Ballycallan, Ballyhale, Inistioge, Thomastown, Ballyfasy and many more. These communities have been left to deal with these developments by themselves, all too often at the mercy of a developer whose interest is in profit first and foremost. Sinn Féin's position on this has been clear for years. We believe energy is a public good. It should strengthen our national wealth, not just line the pockets of overseas investors who have little to no regard for our local communities. We are committed to putting communities at the very core of developing wind energy in Ireland, and to ensuring that this area is properly regulated, not left to those seeking profit at any cost. One recent proposed development in south Kilkenny would not even hold a public consultation in the local community. The meeting was held outside of the area by appointment only. Talk about putting hurdles up for people who just want to have their say. I recently raised with the Department the urgent need to publish updated regulations. I have asked for a timeline but time and time again, all I get back from that office is waffle. These communities are not anti-wind. They simply want adequate guidelines to ensure that the wind turbines are not constructed on top of people's homes. I struggle to see how that is too much to ask for. It is worth remembering that the Minister of State's colleagues sat on these Opposition benches and raised these very same concerns. They called for the same actions and many of the Government's backbenchers still do, both here and at local meetings. It certainly does not appear to be a concern for the Cabinet. Then we have the other elephant in the room, namely, the utter scandal of curtailment payments. People are stunned when they hear about this. It is another clear example of the public being forced to foot the bill for years of under-investment in vital infrastructure like the national grid. We are building wind turbines at such a rate that the grid cannot cope with the supply. Here we are again with the Government putting the cart before the horse. These profit-driven projects are then told to switch off or reduce their generation and they are paid to do it. Last October, that bill hit €115 million, a cost the public had to pay as part of their monthly bills. It is not unique to wind. Solar curtailments in Ireland have increased sevenfold since 2022. We are taxing the public to build infrastructure that works part-time while charging them full-time prices to cover the waste. This is not a green strategy. It is a gold-plated waste of public money. Just like with housing, this developer-led agenda is not for the benefit of consumers nor for the public good. It is designed to ensure high profits for private investors.

Sentiment score: 0.13