I welcome the incoming Chief Whip, the Minister of State, Deputy Curran. I congratulate him on his appointment as Minister of State and Chief Whip. I wish him success in his position.
I want to speak about a situation causing grave concern in Fermoy, the repair and development of Fermoy weir. The idea of being careful lest one gets what one wishes for applies to Fermoy Town Council and those concerned about the repair of the weir in Fermoy. The project to repair the weir and the fish pass stemmed from a request from the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources arising from the European directives that applied to the Department. The initial proposal submitted by the Department would have resulted in the ruin of the weir in Fermoy. The weir is famous in Fermoy, County Cork, throughout the country and to many people from Europe who have enjoyed the scenery and the amenity.
As a result of grave concerns in the locality about the replacement of the fish weir as envisaged by the Department, discussion was led by Fermoy Town Council and supported by local clubs such as Fermoy Rowing Club, which presented an alternative to the original suggestion. The Department intended to replace the weir with a 62 m rock ramp. The project was estimated to cost €250,000 and would be paid for by the Office of Public Works. This matter was the subject of debate between the council, the OPW and the Department. Last December progress was made when the Minister of State, Deputy Conor Lenihan, became involved in discussions and visited the town and examined the project. He appeared to come to the conclusion that the original plan for the replacement of the weir, with the work carried out by the OPW, could be substituted by Fermoy Town Council carrying out the work. The town council had a more straightforward proposal costing slightly more than half the original amount, some €150,000. The proposal was welcomed by local interest groups and Fermoy Rowing Club and seemed the solution to the problem.
A new problem has now emerged. The original project was to be paid for by the OPW or some arm of the State. The Minister of State has now proclaimed that the project, which he permitted to be carried out by Fermoy Town Council, must be paid for locally and completed by next December. Not surprisingly, neither Fermoy Town Council nor Cork County Council has this amount of funding. We are in the unusual situation whereby a project is desirable, the plan is acceptable and the project costs less than the one originally approved but cannot be completed because of the lack of funding at local authority level. Little joy has been had by the town council in recent meetings between it and the Minister of State and subsequent communication with the Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Deputy Mansergh. The fear is that if the project cannot be carried out by Fermoy Town Council, the original project, which is not deemed desirable, will go ahead and will cost the taxpayer an additional €100,000.
I ask the Minister of State to comment on the matter and to use his good offices to liaise with the Minister of State, Deputy Conor Lenihan, to see if the money can be provided by his Department. It makes little sense that the Department, having been willing to spend €250,000 some months ago on a project that divided the town, is unwilling to spend a lesser sum on a project that would resolve the problem and unite the interest groups in the town, such as councillors, Fermoy Rowing Club and the amenity groups. A degree of common sense would solve this problem and bring about the right result. It would save the taxpayer €100,000 and resolve this long running dispute. A little common sense and negotiations between the various Government agencies would be desirable and useful at this stage.