Sinn Féin TD for Meath West Peadar Tóibín TD expressed disappointment regarding the varying stance that Fine Gael TD Regina Doherty has been taking on the issue.
He said he is "troubled" by Deputy Doherty's flip-flopping of her position as she is a member of Cabinet.
He said: "Fine Gael are looking to build hundreds of 45 meter high pylons just 50 meters away from people's homes. These pylons are carrying 400kv power lines, and naturally there is huge concern regarding the impact that this will have on the locality.
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"In February, a motion was passed in the Dáil seeking a full international investigation into the costs of undergrounding the North-South Interconnector. Fine Gael had wanted a watered down version of this investigation – with no independent study or onus to implement the findings - which Deputy Doherty robustly defended and voted for.
"Now, Deputy Doherty is claiming that she couldn't agree with the Fine Gael version of the motion at the time – because it was watered down and not strong enough. This is a clear contradiction on her previous stance where she was fully in support of the Fine Gael position.
"Deputy Doherty is claiming that her views have never changed on this issue, but she has plainly contradicted herself on radio interviews. It is disquieting to say the least that a Cabinet member is proving so flaky on an issue of such huge importance to the area. She is clearly displaying bad faith in these issues, and if all parties are to work together to achieve undergrounding – her flip-flopping is simply not good enough."
(CD/LM)
