I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to raise this important matter for the people of Crossmolina. Last weekend there was major flooding in the Crossmolina area in which many homes and business were badly damaged. Several years ago there was a similar flooding in Dublin. On that occasion the Government was obliged to provide a package for those affected. I want a similar package to be put in place for the people of Crossmolina.
Adjournment Debate.
Flood Relief.
Acting Chairman
I must point out that Deputies Ring, Cooper-Flynn and Cowley have ten minutes between them.
That is an unusual arrangement. I was put out of the Chamber once before over a similar arrangement. I understood the Member called for the Adjournment was given five minutes. I will not disagree with the House's wishes this time. I am disappointed the Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Deputy Parlon, who is responsible for the OPW, has not attended the Chamber for the Adjournment.
In October 2004, I contacted the Minister of State concerning the development of a major supermarket near the River Deel at Crossmolina. The OPW had not been notified about it. The developer informed the OPW when contacted that he had planning permission from Mayo County Council. He assured it that he would restore the river to the same state it was in prior to the development. In February 2005, I again contacted the Minister of State about this development and was informed the matter was being taken up with the developer.
In May 2005, the Minister of State informed me the OPW had received correspondence from the developer that all works had been carried out in accordance with the planning permission. In January 2006, I was informed the OPW had not received notification of this development at the planning stage. At this stage, the developer informed the OPW that the development was within planning permission. The OPW then contacted Mayo County Council which stated the development did not comply with planning permission. As part of its comments on the retention application, the OPW has recommended the council to get a hydrological analysis of the alterations to the flood plain.
Did the OPW receive this plan? Did it get the developer to comply with the planning permission? What will it do to prevent future flooding in Crossmolina? It is unbelievable that a development can be built without planning permission and that Mayo County Council did not notify the OPW. This is negligence on the part of the OPW. The OPW must provide the necessary funding to send an inspection team to Crossmolina. It must ensure the developer restores the river to its original state or else he should be prosecuted. This developer has applied to retain what he had. Within six months the council sought further information but he had to withdraw it because the information did not come back. The people of Crossmolina suffered last Sunday because Mayo County Council and the OPW did not do their jobs. The people of Crossmolina must pay their taxes, make a living and look after their homes. They have been let down by the State. The State must put in place a package for those affected.
I wish I had more time to speak and that the Minister of State, Deputy Parlon, was in the Chamber to answer why a developer could disturb the state of a river and neither the local council nor the OPW did anything about it. It is a disgrace. There is flooding across County Mayo yet no one is responsible, neither the OPW nor Mayo County Council, nor the Moy Development Commission, for drainage work.
The flooding that occurred last Sunday in Crossmolina should never have happened. I downloaded a document from the OPW website entitled, Extreme Flood Events — The Irish Experience. It lists several areas which are notable for flooding and provides a detailed analysis of these rivers flooding. They include the River Dodder, the River Lee, the River Brosna, the River Clare, the River Griffeen and the River Deel in Crossmolina.
How was it that the River Deel could flood again? The damage caused when it flooded in 1989 came to several hundred thousand punts. The damage last weekend is estimated at more than €100 million. Up to 20 houses were flooded up to a depth of three feet. Even the priest's house was flooded and Sunday mass was cancelled for the first time. The Minister saw on the television news an interview with a man who has a carpet showroom in which the stock was destroyed causing at least €200,000 worth of damage. That is a terrible situation which, based on the events of 1989, should not have happened.
People have recently raised concerns about the flooding of the pedestrian walkway in the town. That should have been sufficient warning that something needed to be done. Although the flood was predictable and inevitable, there were no sandbags available. It is only a matter of time before another flood occurs. There is no provision for a flash flood, as there is in Dublin, where the citizens will be well looked after. We saw the Taoiseach in his wellington boots in Dublin but we did not see him in Mayo. There is an urgent need for a hydrological survey of the system to identify what needs to be done. It is obvious what needs to be done and the Office of Public Works has a major responsibility to resolve this matter.
I call for a fund to be established to compensate the affected people of Crossmolina for the damage to their premises, the loss of their livelihoods and the destruction of their businesses. How many times must this happen before it is resolved? This financial package should not be delayed. There must be more than words from the Minister. There should be an immediate assessment by the OPW followed by a quick payout to those in great need. I implore the House to ensure that this never happens again.
I also welcome the opportunity to raise this issue. On Monday I spent five hours in Crossmolina inspecting the extensive damage caused by this flood. It damaged local businesses in the lead-up to Christmas. Deputy Cowley mentioned the furniture store and many hardware shops and businesses selling seasonal items will not have the opportunity to make money at Christmas time as a result of this damage. Many residences were also damaged forcing people to move out of their houses before Christmas, which is a terrible tragedy for them. As a result, elderly people need the help of the State.
I call on the Government to examine why this happened. On Monday I met officials from the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government and the OPW, both of which are investigating why this flood occurred. We need to know the answer to that question and identify where the responsibility lies. I commend the fire service, the Garda and Mayo County Council which were on site. However, bringing sand bags to houses at 9 a.m. which were already under a couple of feet of water was no good. I compliment the emergency services for their excellent work.
I seek relief funding for those affected by the flood. Although many of the businesses have consequential loss insurance, many people, particularly in the context of houses, may not have insurance or access to financial support in time. I ask that the Government come to their aid. Through the health service, the Minister should ask community welfare officers to provide the necessary immediate support to get those people over the Christmas period. That is something positive he can do.
I also ask that the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government provide money to carry out remedial work. The history of the flooding of the River Deel goes back many years. Some 50 to 60 years ago the town of Crossmolina used to flood once or twice a year. During the 1970s extensive work was carried out on the Moy drainage. Millions of pounds were spent and, as a result, flooding stopped until 1989, when there was a severe flood. There has not been a flood in the town in the 17 years since then, but something has happened and we need to know what it is so that remedial action can be put in place ensuring that these people will not be exposed to this type of hardship again.
I propose to take the three matters together.
I am glad to have this opportunity to express my concern, and that of the Government, to the people of Crossmolina affected by the flooding at the weekend. In particular, I wish to sympathise with people whose homes were flooded. This is a particularly traumatic and unpleasant experience and one of which Deputy Parlon has a particular understanding, having spoken in the past with victims of similar flooding. We hope that people will not have lost valuables or other irreplaceable items and that it will be possible for them to recover from the worst effects of the flooding. We are also conscious that a large number of people whose homes or businesses were not flooded were indirectly affected by the flooding and I want to express our concern for those people also. I acknowledge the work of local authority staff and members of the emergency services who are the frontline responders when unpredicted events like this occur and who do magnificent work in very difficult circumstances.
The OPW no longer has responsibility for the provision of humanitarian aid in situations like that which occurred in Crossmolina at the weekend. In line with the recommendations of the flood policy review group report of 2004, responsibility transferred to the Department of Social and Family Affairs, which was considered the most appropriate agency to deal with the issue given the nature of its remit and its nationwide network of offices and staff. I understand the Department is already considering the request for financial assistance and I will ensure the terms of these motions are brought to the attention of the personnel dealing with the matter.
The Minister of State, Deputy Parlon, is also aware that apart from the immediate impact of flooding, there is a longer term effect as people fear a recurrence. In this regard officials from the OPW were in Crossmolina yesterday to see the situation at first hand and to gather information that will be essential in trying to determine the cause of the flooding. That process is ongoing. Early indications are that the flood in the River Deel at the weekend was the fourth highest on record, though somewhat lower than the level when flooding occurred previously in 1989. The river flooded its banks at a point upstream of the section which is maintained by the OPW under the Arterial Drainage Act 1945. The OPW scheme is maintained in proper repair and effective condition as required by the Act. However, the OPW has no power to undertake works in the area where the flood occurred and did not undertake the work referred to in Deputy Ring's contribution.
The OPW will be considering what measures can be taken to provide protection to what is now the accepted standard, namely, to defend against a flood event that has a 1%, or a once in 100 years, probability of occurring. It is likely to take some time to produce a design for such a scheme. In the meantime the OPW is also considering whether it may be possible through short-term measures to provide more immediate improvement in flow conditions on the River Deel. Contact has already been established between the OPW and Mayo County Council in this regard and this will continue. The discussions between the OPW and the local authority will also consider what mechanisms might be used to implement any measures considered likely to be beneficial.
Health Services.
I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to raise this important issue and the Minister for replying to it. It is a serious situation in which the HSE has failed to provide a physiotherapist in the Drogheda-Dundalk region, which covers south Monaghan. I have raised this matter because in the last few days I have encountered two serious cases. I have a long letter on one case in which the patient fell ill last May and was transferred from Beaumont Hospital to Dún Laoghaire hospital on 9 June where she received eight weeks of treatment. This shows that she needed that type of support. When her husband took her home she was assured of all sorts of backup.
The HSE talks about home care packages, physiotherapy, and so on. However, this woman has not received anything. After much pressure she received a few sessions of physiotherapy in Drogheda. However, the Drogheda unit, according to the HSE a centre of excellence for the north east, no longer offers physiotherapy services to outpatients. Services at Monaghan General Hospital are being transferred to this centre of excellence. Having spent a period in Dún Laoghaire rehabilitation centre the 39 year old woman returned home but has received no physiotherapy to date. Is that a reasonable or realistic commitment after all the talk about home support and care? She did not receive a home care allowance either. Her husband had to take time off work to look after her. That she has not received physiotherapy is causing her serious problems and affecting her mentally. She was supposed to return to Beaumont Hospital for an appointment on 20 November but this was cancelled and rearranged for next year. Is this the health service to which that family is entitled when we have budgeted €14.5 billion in 2007? I urge the Minister of State to re-examine this situation and what is happening on the ground.
On a walk around Carrickmacross I met a young girl in a wheelchair who had undergone an operation. She cannot receive physiotherapy. Is this the appropriate treatment of a 17 year old who wishes to continue with her life but desperately needs help with cerebral palsy? No home help or physiotherapy is available. This is happening at the centre of excellence to which the colleague of the Minister of State is directing the people of Monaghan and Cavan, assuring them there will be no cutback in the Monaghan and Cavan service until a better service is available. Those in south Monaghan normally attend the hospitals at Drogheda or Louth.
Why are there no physiotherapists? The Minister of State was interviewed on "Today with Pat Kenny" but I listened to a father who complained that his daughter, a fully qualified physiotherapist, cannot find work. None of her classmates, nor those who qualify next year, will find work because of a recruitment embargo. While the embargo does not seem to affect sections of the HSE administration, it affects those in frontline care. I beg the Minister of State, for the sake of the 39 year old woman who is desperate and in serious difficulty, that she be provided with physiotherapy. I will gladly provide the Minister of State with details after the debate. An attempt has been made to facilitate these patients at Mount Hamilton House, Dundalk but neither has received confirmation that physiotherapy is available there. It is not available at Drogheda or Dundalk.
I respond to this debate on behalf of my colleague the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Harney. The HSE has operational and funding responsibility for the provision of health and social care services, including physiotherapy services, in south Monaghan. The HSE has advised me that the primary, community and continuing care physiotherapy service for Louth and south Monaghan has 1.5 whole-time equivalent physiotherapy staff in its core service. Referrals of approximately 150 patients per year are taken and prioritised on the basis of clinical need. Referrals are made mainly by general practitioners, public health nurses and hospitals following an inpatient stay. In addition, physiotherapy is provided in the community by a number of teams working in disability, district rehabilitation in Louth, palliative care, early intervention and children's disability. All these teams cover the south Monaghan area.
The HSE has advised that persons requiring physiotherapy from south Monaghan can be referred to the outpatient unit in Louth County Hospital. The hospital has four physiotherapists attached to its outpatient unit. It takes referrals mainly from GPs and hospital consultants. Hospital and community physiotherapy services are well integrated and the physiotherapy managers jointly manage hospital and community services. Physiotherapists in either the community or in hospital services share the responsibilities when required.
The HSE plans to further enhance the physiotherapy role by filling approved posts within existing teams that are currently vacant, improving the existing community team structure and further developing discharge planning arrangements. Further implementation of the primary care strategy will also impact on the provision of physiotherapy services. The strategy, Primary Care: A New Direction, aims to develop services in the community to give people direct access to integrated multidisciplinary teams of general practitioners, nurses, health care assistants, home helpers, physiotherapists, occupational therapists and others. It has been estimated that up to 95% of people's health and social services needs can be properly met within a primary care setting and the establishment of the new primary care teams can contribute greatly to enhancing community based health services in these areas.
The Minister of State is talking bunkum.
Physiotherapy services will form part of the services provided by many of the new primary care teams. The HSE received an additional €10 million in 2006 to enable the establishment of up to 100 primary care teams. A further €10 million will be provided in 2007 to meet the full year costs of these developments. The total funding provided by the Government to support the implementation of the strategy will be increased to €38 million. This is in addition to the very substantial resources already in the funding base for a wide range of primary care services.
The HSE is working to establish this complement of primary care teams in 2006 and it expects substantial progress to be achieved by the end of the year. This will ensure integrated, accessible services for the populations served by these teams. The funding is being targeted by the HSE to provide the potential for each local health office, formerly community care areas, to establish up to three primary care teams in accordance with the adopted national policy. It is estimated that approximately 77 of these front line staff posts will be physiotherapy posts.
There has been no physiotherapy since September. That is a fact.
School Accommodation.
This matter concerns some 1,000 students and 100 teachers and ancillary staff at three schools in Clonakilty. This is a case of outrageous discrimination against the people of Clonakilty by the Fianna Fáil-led Government and particularly against the young population attending Clonakilty Community College, Clonakilty Gaelscoil and the national school at Knockskeagh in Clonakilty parish. Clonakilty Community College was built for 400 students but now holds 600 and employs 60 teachers and ancillary staff. The Gaelscoil has 230 pupils and 25 staff. Knockskeagh has 110 pupils and ten staff.
What do the three schools have in common? All are in the parish of Clonakilty, are in dreadful condition and have been pawned off by this Government with meaningless promises and commitments. A second campus has been opened for the community college at the other end of the town, giving rise to major health and safety problems. I warned the Government of the danger of accidents involving young students travelling across the town. It is a great college coping with dreadful conditions. It provides adult education, post Leaving Certificate programmes, ionad lán Gaeilge and a class for moderately handicapped people. On 24 April 2002 the then Minister for Education and Science, Dr. Woods, wrote concerning the much needed extension to the college. He stated: "I am pleased to inform you that I have authorised the appointment of a design team to initiate the architectural planning of this extension." What has happened to this authorisation or did it ever exist? Was it a totally phony pre-election facade? Was it typical Fianna Fáil electioneering, handing out false commitments and promises?
Absolutely nothing has happened on the ground four and a half years on, other than that the needs of the college having grown. The student population has increased and the problem has worsened. Four and half years on, the Government gives a succession of meaningless responses with total contempt for the students, parents and people of Clonakilty in general. The Minister refused to visit when actually passing by the school despite being asked to view the problem. Her absence from the House tonight is further evidence of her contempt. She and the Government have shown absolute contempt for the problems of Clonakilty and its community college.
The case of Clonakilty gaelscoil is similar. It was founded in 1994 and given official recognition in 1997, but it is housed in temporary prefabs which, to put it mildly, have seen better days. For example, the ceilings of the toilets collapsed ten days ago, but fortunately no schoolchildren were in situ at the time.
As a parallel to the waste of the Government on e-voting machines, PPARS and elsewhere, the case of Clonakilty gaelscoil is an even worse example. This year alone, €330,000 will be paid by the Government for the rent of those dilapidated and run-down collection of leaking prefabs. Again, inquiries through Dáil questions meet with the totally opaque response from the Minister for Education and Science, who appears to have adopted a lack of transparency and a total lack of accountability as her trademark. It is said that wilful waste makes woeful want, and this is a major example. The trouble is that the wilful waste is on the Government's part but the woeful want is on the part of the scoláirí and muinteoirí of the gaelscoil, who yearn for decent conditions.
Knockskeagh national school is the third section of Clonakilty's crown of educational thorns. It was built 70 years ago and is an outstanding school operating in Third World conditions. It is included in the INTO list of substandard schools. In July 1997, the Department of Education confirmed that an OPW report indicated: "Due to the extent of the proposed works, it will be necessary to consider these works as a major building project." It also remarked that due to financial constraints — this was just after the 1997 election when all promises were off and money was being cut back straight away — the Department was not in a position to consider that major project "in the current year" of 1997.
Ten years on, nothing has happened, apart from a major part of the roof blowing off five years ago. Again, fortunately, there were no casualties at the time. There was the charade of offering to allow the school to participate in the small schools scheme, years after the Department admitted it was a major project.
The Government is telling us about its €5 billion surplus, which is a sick joke in Clonakilty. I demand on the part of the people of Clonakilty decent conditions for the schools there; an end to the absolute contempt shown by the Government to the children, students, parents and teachers in Clonakilty; and no further delay in issuing the necessary sanctions and approval for the three schools I mentioned.
I thank the Deputy for raising the matter as it affords me the opportunity to outline the Government's strategy for capital investment in education projects, and also to outline the position regarding Gaelscoil Chloch na Coillte, Clonakilty community college and Knockskeagh national school.
Modernising facilities in our 3,200 primary and 750 post-primary schools, as well as responding to emerging needs in areas of rapid population growth, is a major priority for the Government. Since taking office, it has shown focused determination to improve the condition of our school buildings and ensure the appropriate facilities are in place to enable the implementation of a broad and balanced curriculum.
As evidence of this commitment, there will be in the region of 1,300 building and modernisation projects active in our primary and post-primary schools during 2006. This year alone, in the region of €500 million is being spent on primary and post-primary projects throughout the country, compared to approximately €90 million in 1997. I am sure the Deputy will agree this record level of investment is a positive testament to the high priority the Government attaches to the challenge of school modernisation and development.
Turning to the specific matter in hand, Gaelscoil Chloch na Coillte is a co-educational school with an enrolment of 232 pupils in September 2005. Although the September 2006 enrolment has yet to be confirmed, the Department of Education and Science understands that enrolments have increased by approximately 20% in the past five years. The school has a current staffing of principal plus nine mainstream teachers, one learning support and resource teacher and two resource teachers.
The school planning section of the Department has determined the appropriate level of accommodation to be provided will cater for a principal and 12 mainstream class teachers and appropriate ancillary activities. A suitable site has now been acquired to facilitate the construction of a new 12-classroom school, which will meet the school's long-term needs. This project is under active consideration in the Department.
Clonakilty community college is one of two schools serving the post-primary education needs of Clonakilty. These are Clonakilty community college, which is co-educational; and Sacred Heart secondary school, which is all girls. Clonakilty community college was formed in 1980 as a result of the amalgamation of the town's vocational school and St Mary's boys' secondary school and it operates under the aegis of County Cork VEC. The community college was built in 1980 to cater for 400 pupils and since then additional accommodation has been provided to cater for increasing enrolments.
Cork VEC requested that the Department review the accommodation at the college and make capital funding available for a refurbishment and extension. This application was processed having regard to all relevant factors, including enrolment and demographic trends in the area and the overall accommodation requirements of the post-primary schools in Clonakilty. An accommodation brief to cater for a long-term enrolment of 550 pupils has been agreed with the school authorities. Schedules of accommodation were revised earlier this year to ensure the appropriate level of accommodation is provided in order to meet the school's long-term needs.
Knockskeagh national school is a co-educational school with an enrolment of 105 pupils in September 2005. Although the September 2006 enrolment has yet to be confirmed, the Department understands enrolments are relatively stable at this school. It has a current staffing of principal and three mainstream teachers, one learning support and resource teacher and one resource teacher.
The management authority of this school declined an offer of funding made under the small schools scheme 2006 to provide appropriate accommodation for a four-teacher school on the basis that it could not deliver the required accommodation within the grant approved. It also raised the need to review the long-term accommodation needs of the schools as it had indications that the school population is set to increase in the medium to long term. This re-assessment of the school's projected enrolment and long-term projected staffing is nearing completion and, when finalised, a decision on how best to provide for the long-term needs will be taken.
Once again I thank the Deputy for affording me the opportunity to outline the position on these particular school projects and highlight the enormous work being undertaken by the Department of Education and Science in implementing the school building and modernisation programme to ensure infrastructure of the highest standard is available for all our school-going population.
The Government has a few months left to do the business before it will be thrown out.
The Dáil adjourned at 11.30 p.m. until 10.30 a.m. on Wednesday, 6 December 2006.