1 January 2002

PRESS RELEASE

GREEN PARTY CALLS FOR PUBLICATION OF DÚN LAOGHAIRE RATHDOWN COUNCIL EMERGENCY PLAN  

The Green Party has called for Dún Laoghaire Rathdown Council’s Emergency Plan to be made public. The Manager has refused an initial request by the Party for a copy of the Plan.

“Following on from the tragic events of September 11th and the subsequent antics of Minister Jacob on national radio, we felt it was important that any information on emergency planning was in the public domain”, explained Dún Laoghaire Dáil Candidate Ciarán Cuffe. “In early December we wrote to the Council seeking details of the County’s Emergency Plan.

“On 10th December John Fitzgerald, the Director of Environmental Services in Dún Laoghaire Rathdown Council wrote back refusing the request and stating that ‘This Council’s Emergency Plan is by it’s nature sensitive and confidential and is therefore not available for public released.’ Clearly this answer is not good enough.

“The Green Party is calling on the Council to tell us whether they have any detailed emergency planning in place, and to disclose details of their plans."

“A major accident or terrorist attack on the nuclear plants at Sellafield in Cumbria or Wilfyn in Wales has the potential to cause massive casualties on the East Coast of Ireland. It is important that the general public know in advance what preparations Local Authorities have made for such a possibility. The public have a right to know.”

ENDS

For further information contact:

Ciarán Cuffe      087 265 2075 or 618 3082