Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 23 Feb 1999

Vol. 500 No. 7

Written Answers. - Harbours and Piers.

Mary Coughlan

Question:

125 Miss Coughlan asked the Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources when he will sign an order to transfer ownership of Ballyshannon Harbour to Donegal County Council; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5181/99]

Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources (Dr. Woods)

The Government's Action Programme for the Millennium identifies as a key priority "transferring small harbours to local control to develop marine leisure activities" in the context of securing and enhancing the livelihoods of the coastal communities who depend on the sea for their future. Partnership 2000 commits to "review the strategic options for the future development and management of declining commercial regional ports".

The Strategy Statement 1998–2000 of the Department lists as a key objective a commitment "to facilitate the restructuring of the roles of sub-regional ports". Within these contexts consultants have been contracted to undertake a review of State regional ports and harbours with a cargo throughput of less than 250,000 tonnes. The intention is to develop a general strategic framework for these ports and harbours, having regard to their differing conditions and potential, and to recommend generic and port/harbour related models and options which will best deliver the objectives of the strategic framework.

The review of the 16 State regional ports around the country includes Ballyshannon Harbour. The regional ports and harbours covered by the study currently operate under the 1946 Harbours Act and range from those with busy commercial traffic to others catering for a mix of uses including seafishing and marine leisure as well as some which have experienced a severe decline in terms of commercial and seaborne trade. The intention is to chart the way forward for these ports and set out a long-term, coherent and sustainable development plan for their future and for the people whose livelihoods they support as well as identifying the best development options, including local authority control in terms of ownership, financing and activities/operations.

Consideration of any development proposals and options for future ownership and management, use of assets and activities and operations of the regional harbours will follow the outcome of the consultants' review, which is expected to be completed in a matter of months. An extensive consultation process has been undertaken as apart of the review to incorporate the views of all interested parties prior to determination of the nature of restructuring of the ports concerned.

In relation to the ownership of the harbour, I do not wish to pre-empt the outcome of the review of State regional ports under the Harbours Act, 1946. While I acknowledge that Donegal County Council, at a meeting on 14 December 1998, agreed to take over ownership of the harbour, any such transfer can only be executed with the consent of the Minister for the Environment and Local Government, in accordance with section 8 of the Harbours Act, 1996. I consider that it would be prudent, however, to await the outcome of the review before proceeding to determine the most beneficial option for the future of the harbour.