Corrib Gas is a key election issue

April 30, 2007 at 10:23 am | Posted in Statements | Leave a comment

The Corrib gas conflict is a key election issue in Mayo. This project, which has the potential to bring much needed development and benefits to the Erris region and to the County as a whole has, from the beginning, been an unmitigated disaster for reasons that are now well-known and widely acknowledged.

Instead of this problem being addressed and resolved it has been neglected for seven years. This has happened because of a failure of political leadership on both a local and national level. Those running for office in Mayo who are now making claims to qualities of leadership are indicted by their own failures in the Corrib gas issue. The people of Erris and Mayo deserved better.

With the election campaign now begun, it is incumbent on all candidates to clearly state their position on the Bellanaboy project and to state how they propose to resolve this conflict. The proposal for an Independent Commission remains the only viable solution on the table.  

The problem has gone on for far too long. The Corrib gas conflict needs to be resolved not prolonged and that requires political will and leadership. The voters of Mayo can look to this issue as a defining test of those qualities in the candidates before them.   

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