MINISTER OF State for Justice Kathleen Lynch called for “common sense” to prevail and mediation to take place in the case of the Co Offaly woman jailed for contempt for refusing to allow the ESB to cut down trees on her land in Co Offaly for the erection of pylons and power lines.

Ms Lynch said the circumstances Teresa Treacy found herself in were “ridiculous”. But she insisted neither Minister for Justice Alan Shatter nor Minister for Energy Pat Rabbitte could intervene in a court case where a person was imprisoned for contempt.

The Minister expressed her sympathy for Ms Treacy, who was imprisoned on September 13th. “I would have every sympathy for her, but it is not possible for the ESB to purge her contempt. This is now an issue between Teresa Treacy and the High Court.”

Ms Lynch said she was “astonished at the ignorance” of United Left Alliance TDs who pleaded for the Minister to intervene in the case. Ms Lynch said “someone should mediate in relation to this lady because it’s ridiculous circumstances she finds herself in. This should be a matter of mediation.” Socialist Party TD Joe Higgins insisted the Minister for Energy should have been in the Dáil to deal with the issue because it related to the ESB, and the Leas Cheann Comhairle Michael Kitt said he would investigate that.

Mr Higgins said: “The ESB has the option of putting the cable under the ground. This should be done for environmental and health reasons.

“The ESB is a powerful semi-State company. It is outrageous that it is oppressing a powerless citizen in this way. The ESB should withdraw the contempt.”

Mr Higgins was supported by United Left Alliance TDs Joan Collins, Clare Daly and Richard Boyd Barrett, who rejected a statement by Ms Lynch that public representatives who were not allowed to visit Ms Treacy, were obliged to make a request in writing. He said the deputy governor of Mountjoy contacted the Department of Justice and they said they would get back to him about a request for a visit. “They never got back to us.”

Ms Lynch said: “I will take on board very much Deputy Boyd Barrett’s issue about the visits and make inquiries.”