Sunday Business Post (Ireland): Mediator ‘next hurdle’ for Shell dispute 02 October 2005 

By Laura Noonan

The “next hurdle" in the Shell dispute is finding a willing and able mediator on whom Shell and local Mayo residents can agree, energy minister Noel Dempsey said this weekend.

The Rossport Five were released from jail last Friday after Shell and local residents agreed to Dempsey's proposals to work with a mediator to resolve the dispute.

The five men spent 94 days in jail for refusing to agree not to obstruct Shell's pipeline, which the men claim is unsafe.

“I haven't had anybody knocking on my door [for the mediator job] and I don't have anybody in mind,” Dempsey said.

He admitted that people “might not exactly be queuing up for the job'‘.

“But I'm sure there are people out there who will be up for the challenge,” he said.

Dempsey said he would speak with the Taoiseach and other members of the government this weekend to see if they had any names to suggest.

He will then consult with Shell and local residents next week, but said he would be reluctant to put a list of candidates to both groups.

“If we produce a list and people start getting eliminated off it, then there are stories that Shell rejected this fellow because of this and that, and Shell rejected the other guy because of whatever,” Dempsey said.

“I don't really want to get into that.”

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