I wish to share my time with Deputy McManus.
Adjournment Debate. - Swimming Pool Projects.
Is that agreed? Agreed.
County Wicklow, which has a population of more than 100,000, does not have a public swimming pool. Residents of the county who wish to avail of the facilities of a pool have to travel to Wexford, Carlow, Kildare or Dublin. This causes a difficulty for primary schools which wish to avail of swimming lessons. It can involve a round trip of more than two hours.
After much lobbying over a long period, the Minister for the Environment in the rainbow coalition Government, Deputy Howlin, in March 1997 gave the green light to two projects, one in Wicklow town and the other in Arklow. Fund-raising committees have been in operation in both towns for some time. To date, the Wicklow town committee has raised approximately £300,000 and the Arklow committee, £200,000.
Much local effort has been put into the projects and a certain air of disquiet has enveloped both towns as they wait in anticipation of an announcement by the Minister. I would appreciate if the Minister would clarify the position in respect of both projects. Anything short of a definitive commitment and timescale would be a disappointment and scant reward for much hard work.
I thank Deputy Timmins for giving me the opportunity to support him on the issue of the provision of swimming pools in Wicklow town and Arklow. The committees in both towns have put in a tremendous amount of work and have received the support of their local councils and communities. The case was put so strongly and effectively that both pools got the go-ahead under the previous Government, of which I was proud to be a member. Will the Minister indicate the timeframe involved for both pools and clarify, once and for all, that they will be safeguarded in the Department.
The county I represent does not have a publicly owned swimming pool. That is an extraordinary state of affairs as we approach the end of the 20th century. We have an opportunity to realise the ambitions and goals of two strong communities which have shown their commitment. I ask the Minister to match it and indicate a specified timeframe for the construction of both pools.
I thank Deputies Timmins and McManus for raising this matter. I appreciate the Deputies' interest in these projects and I thank them for this opportunity to set out the position.
My colleague, the Minister for the Environment and Local Government, Deputy Dempsey, is unable to be in the House to respond to this item and he has asked me to do so on his behalf.
The Department pays grants of up to 100 per cent of the approved cost of refurbishing existing swimming pools and up to 80 per cent of the approved cost of new pools, with the remainder of the cost being funded by local contribution. To qualify for a grant, a pool must be built to the Department's specification. The commitment of funds to a particular project can only be considered when the project design has been approved and the local authority is in a position to accept a tender.
The overall allocation for the swimming pool programme and the competing demands of other swimming pool projects for the available funds must, of course, be taken into account. The provision for the swimming pool programme in 1998 is £4 million. The cost of swimming pool projects has risen considerably over the last few years due to general increases in construction costs and the higher standard of facilities being provided.
Commitments in respect of approved projects under construction, or on which work is expected to commence later in the year, amount to £7.5 million. In addition, there is over £40 million worth of projects in hand in the Department at various stages of planning, which are also seeking funding.
Approval to preliminary proposals for a new swimming pool in Wicklow town at an estimated cost of £1.4 million issued in April 1997. The local authority was asked at the time to prepare contract documents for the project and to submit them to the Department for approval. The local authority subsequently submitted a cost plan with some drawings but the detailed specifications and drawings which constitute the formal contract documents were not submitted to the Department until 8 April 1998.
Approval to preliminary proposals for the refurbishment of the existing pool in Arklow, at an estimated cost of £1.2 million, also issued in April 1997, with a request to prepare and submit contract documents for the project.
The initial documents submitted by the local authority did not comply with the Department's guideline specification for swimming pools and in August last year the council was asked to submit revised documents. The formal contract documents were finally received in the Department at the beginning of April.
The contract documents for both projects are currently being examined in the Department.