asked the Minister for Finance when the cleaning of the Clare-Dalgan River will be commenced, as acres of meadows and crops in the vicinity have been destroyed owing to its not being cleaned.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Clare-Dalgan River.
Any action in relation to new drainage works must await the enactment of the new legislation.
Will the Parliamentary Secretary state when the new legislation will be brought in? Considering the necessity for increased food production, does he realise that there are thousands of acres of arable land flooded and that immediate steps should be taken to remedy the situation? Have we to wait for this legislation to be brought in?
The Minister realises the necessity for and the urgency of the drainage question or, as I have told the House, he would not be about to introduce the Drainage Bill. Nothing can be done in relation to the problem the Deputy has in mind, or any of the other drainage problems all over the country, until that Bill has been made the law of the land.
When?
As I told the House, I am not in a position to give any forecast, but I have given an assurance that no delay that it is possible to overcome will be allowed to obstruct us.
I hope the drainage of this river will be immediately considered when the Bill is passed.