Mar is eol don Aire Stáit, tá an domhan athraithe go hiomlán, go háirithe anseo san Eoraip. Nuair a smaoiníonn muid faoi chúrsaí fuinnimh, is léir go bhfuil athraithe móra ann. Tá siad le feiceáil i gcomhthéacs na hIaráine agus an tionchar atá ag an gcoimhlint sin ar an Eoraip agus ar Éirinn. When we speak of international conflict, we have to recognise the impact it has from both a European and Irish context. Increased oil and energy prices are connected to it. That needs to be recognised, particularly when we are debating in this House. We need to acknowledge that increased fuel and energy costs are Europe wide and worldwide. They do not affect Ireland alone. The Government has taken severe and serious steps in trying to address the issues in Ireland. As the Minister of State will be aware, the election of Péter Magyar in Hungary and the end of the autocratic rule of Viktor Orbán was discussed at the recent European Council meeting. The huge mandate Mr. Magyar received signifies an end to autocracy and that Hungary is open to democracy. There have been some developments in Hungary since the new Prime Minister came into place, however. I refer to his comments that the Druzhba pipeline with Russia should open and the feelings of the Ukrainian people and President Zelenskyy in that regard. We need to look at some of these comments quite carefully. We cannot forget - this was also stated at the European Council meeting - that we must continue to stand with the Ukrainian people and not let any member state or changes to member states have any influence on how we support the Ukrainian people. This is a prime example. If that pipeline is reopened, it will have a negative impact on Ukraine and a positive one on Russia, particularly when we are trying to stall the limits of Russian financial ability. I mentioned energy prices at the beginning of my speech. The EU has agreed to a co-ordinated EU action when it comes to energy, but there is a need to accelerate the energy transition. My perspective, and I think that of most people in this House, is that we must do it in a sustainable and renewable way, including onshore and offshore wind and solar energy. We must prioritise renewable energy as much as possible. There have been comments over the past few weeks about an opening-up of the discussion around nuclear energy. We need to have that serious conversation. I am not talking about large nuclear plants but, rather, small modular reactors, SMRs. We look at Denmark in this country as a good example of how to do energy. It has done offshore energy better than anywhere else in Europe. Some might argue it has done it better than anywhere else in the world. Denmark banned nuclear energy in 1985, including research, but it has now changed that because it realises it needs to have an energy mix. What I have been calling for and continue to call for is that we review our nuclear ban. I am not calling for a nuclear power plant, but we must allow research into the pros and cons. We might come to the conclusion that it is not for us, but at least let us do it in an informed manner.

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