Green Party candidate makes howler on Pat Kenny this morning

[porter]

I did feel a wee bit sorry for the woman but you gotta send people out who at least sound like they know what they are talking about even if its BS.

I presume she meant to say that gas was at least cleaner than oil and coal...and there'll be a transition period to green energy yada yada yada

[Roare]

RTÉ.ie Media Player: RTÉ Radio 1 (51 minutes, 17 seconds in)

Elizabeth Davidson: The Green Party is looking at renewable energy and industries which...we believe that the recovery for jobs will be green and that that's where our future lies. As you see this morning there's an announcement of a wind farm that's being set up in the west of Ireland to produce jobs. This is...this is...

Pat Kenny: This is a manufacturing plant to build wind turbines

ED: It is, but the whole thrust of the economy in the future will be green, and I think that George is looking back at an old model. After all, Fine Gael talked up the property bubble as well; they wanted to cut stamp duty to keep the prices inflated.We always said in the Green Party that this was crazy. We believe in a sustainable economy and we said, and we were first to say, that it was treason what was happening in the banks. When we're talking about energy, green energy is the way forward. This is what the world wants, this is what the world needs...

PK: Alright but Bord Gais is a company....based on what you're saying, if green is the future, you might as well sell it off now before anyone cops on that it's going to be worth nothing in a few years.

ED: Well, you know, it's a national asset, I don't believe in selling off national assets.

PK: But I mean if green is the future, Bord Gais has no future in selling gas

ED: Well, there's green gas, green natural gas.

Alex White (or George Lee): Sorry?

[Pause]

ED: Natural gas is a green...[long pause]

PK: No, it's a fossil fuel

ED: It's a fossil fuel, but what we're looking at is energy, cheap energy, and that's what it is.

Listened to this myself.

Never laughed so hard!

[BoyInTheHood]

Ah yes, don't you know OPEP is a charity!

[monodrone]

I presume she meant to say that gas was at least cleaner than oil and coal...and there'll be a transition period to green energy yada yada yada

I'd presume the same alright.

There's no future long term, but it's going to be years before we can change from fossil fuels. If Bord Gais is going to have any long term future it needs to gradually change form a gas company to an energy company much like BP, Shell and numerous other traditional oil companies.

and she was right on the money about Fine Gael, stamp duty and the inflation of house prices.

Shame it's been overshadowed by such an embarassing slip.

[mccafferty cat]

Hilarious

[porter]

I'd presume the same alright.

There's no future long term, but it's going to be years before we can change from fossil fuels. If Bord Gais is going to have any long term future it needs to gradually change form a gas company to an energy company much like BP, Shell and numerous other traditional oil companies.

and she was right on the money about Fine Gael, stamp duty and the inflation of house prices.

Shame it's been overshadowed by such an embarassing slip.

Agreed.

Also, George seems to be finding the transition to multi-person discussions a little challenging..

[breakingnews]

She hasn't a hope anyway lol

She said near about mid way through the debate that she's using old posters.

[twinman]

by the way; if bord gáis was sold off for €500m it will finance the public borrowing og €50m per day for ten days. do you think it is worth while selling of such a strategic asset for 10 days borrowing?

[todaytonight]

by the way; if bord gáis was sold off for €500m it will finance the public borrowing og €50m per day for ten days. do you think it is worth while selling of such a strategic asset for 10 days borrowing?

Of course not but you have to admit that to have someone from the GREEN PARTY refer to natural Gas as Green on national radio is hilarious!

[oceanclub]

That was bad alright. Not anywhere as bad as the Brennan performance though. He hadn't a clue about NAMA - and seemed to think it was already working brilliantly. What a thick. I got the impression he was out of his depth and didn't want to be a FF candidate at all. I'd bet he was pushed into it. I almost felt sorry for him. But why should I? He's part of the problem.

Exactly - my sympathy is slightly limited. Fianna Fail's attitude to elections can be summed up as "droit de seigneur" - in fact, it wouldn't surprise me if some FF TDs did think the job included the right to deflower newlywed brides on their wedding night.

P.