Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 14 Feb 2007

Vol. 631 No. 4

Adjournment Debate.

Flood Relief.

Mr. Ring

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to raise this important issue. I am pleased that the Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Deputy Parlon, will respond because it is he who has responsibility for the Office of Public Works. I understand he is busy with his election campaign but I hope he will visit south Mayo in coming weeks to meet the people affected by the serious flooding there.

Before Christmas, I and the local Fine Gael councillor Patsy O'Brien visited the home of Jimmy Connolly and his wife Eileen. While everybody else was preparing for Christmas, this family's home was flooded and they could not get in or out of it. Mr. Connolly found himself in a dire situation because his home was not insured against flooding.

I am disappointed that the Government did not declare Mayo a disaster area. When flooding occurred in Clonmel, the Shannon region and the Taoiseach's constituency in Dublin, all the State agencies were on the scene within 24 hours and those locations were declared disaster areas.

Several reports issued by Mayo County Council indicate that there are 50 places in south Mayo where the roads need to be raised and drainage work is required. This will cost money but it is essential in the long term. A regional road in the area which is used by 7,900 vehicles every day was closed for three weeks. This caused great inconvenience to families in places such as Neale, Cross, Kilmaine and Cong, where parents could not bring their children to school or get into or out of their homes.

The Government must take action to improve drainage in this area. Moreover, an agency must be set up to deal specifically with drainage. Neither Mayo County Council nor the OPW took responsibility for the situation in south Mayo. A dedicated agency should be able to decree that buildings should not be constructed in certain locations. What happened in south Mayo in recent months cannot be allowed to recur. This is not the first time the region has been affected by flooding and the problem will not go away.

Something must be done. In the first instance, families whose homes were damaged must receive some assistance. The most important action is the raising of regional roads. The 50 vulnerable spots identified by Mayo County Council must be dealt with immediately. A situation such as that at Christmas, where people were unable to access their homes, cannot be allowed to recur. People had to use boats and many had to be rescued by the Civil Defence and emergency services. I compliment the agencies who assisted these residents at Christmas, including even the county council when it was called upon. The problem is that nobody would take responsibility. I spoke to the county council's engineer, who blamed the OPW. The OPW, on the other hand, blamed the council.

What are the Minister of State's proposals to rectify this problem? What can be done for the families who endured serious flooding problems, some of whom lost their homes? There was also serious flooding in Crossmolina in November. I previously raised with the Minister of State and the OPW the problem of people interfering with the flow of the river there. Will the OPW take these people to court? Those responsible submitted an application for retention approval in respect of which the council sought further information. This information was not provided within the six-month timeframe.

Will the Minister of State come to Mayo and meet Jimmy Connolly and his wife Eileen and hear what they have suffered? He should see for himself the damage done. I know his officials visited the region and identified the serious problems there. Resources will be necessary to rectify the matter and that funding must be found once and for all. I hope the Minister of State will show some compassion by dealing first with those affected. After that, the roads and arterial drainage must be upgraded.

We are told that climate change will bring heavier rainfall in the winter. The problem will not go away and I ask the Minister of State to do something about it. Like every politician in this House, he has a seat to hold. However, I ask him to visit the area even at this late stage.

Minister of State at the Department of Finance (Mr. Parlon)

I welcome the opportunity to express once again my concern and that of the Government regarding those affected by the flooding that occurred in various areas in recent months as a result of exceptional and continued rainfall. This is a singularly traumatic and unpleasant experience for those affected and I am conscious that the flooding was particularly severe in Deputy Ring's own area in Mayo. I have seen first-hand how severe it can be. It is devastating when a family home is damaged.

With this in mind I announced in mid-January that the Commissioners of Public Works will work with local authorities to identify solutions to the various flooding incidents that have occurred. The local authorities are the front-line responders where State sector assistance is required in the event of serious flooding. They are therefore likely to have information which, allied to the local knowledge of their staff, will be invaluable in determining the most likely immediate cause of the flooding. This information, in conjunction with the expertise of the OPW in dealing with river engineering, will assist in devising potential solutions to the individual problems. Where additional surveys or other information is needed, this will be arranged. Where it is not possible to find flood relief measures that are viable, other flood protection measures may be considered.

It is my intention that where solutions are identified that offer an acceptable level of social and financial benefit, and which are environmentally acceptable, these will be implemented as quickly as possible. Such works will be financed from existing resources available to the OPW for drainage and flood relief. OPW's role in this initiative will be to provide support and assistance to local authorities in dealing with problems in their areas and to bring co-ordination where more than one authority is involved. The initiative cannot succeed without the full co-operation of local communities and, in particular, landowners who may be requested to permit access to their properties to facilitate relief measures. Over recent weeks, OPW officials have been involved in urgent and ongoing consultations with the various local authorities concerned and the national parks and wildlife service with a view to identifying measures which are both feasible and environmentally acceptable.

In regard to south Mayo, OPW officials are in ongoing consultation with Mayo County Council in respect of the flooding there and I understand they are making good progress towards identifying possible flood relief works for Crossmolina, Clyard and Kilmaine and are continuing to seek solutions to the flooding problems in the other areas affected. Various relevant reports and in-house studies are expected to be available this week and further meetings have been scheduled over the next few days.

The provision of any form of humanitarian assistance for those affected by the flooding is a matter for the Department of Social and Family Affairs. In a reply to recent parliamentary questions regarding possible humanitarian aid for persons affected by the recent flooding, the Minister for Social and Family Affairs stated:

The supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) scheme, which is administered by the Community Welfare Division of the Health Service Executive (HSE), is designed to provide immediate and flexible assistance for those in need who do not qualify for payment under other State schemes. Under the legislation governing the scheme, the Health Service Executive may make an exceptional needs payment to people on social welfare or health board payments. This is a once-off payment to meet an unforeseen or special need that cannot be met from a person's basic income.

Assistance in the form of an Urgent Needs Payment (UNP) can be also made to persons who would not normally be entitled to SWA, to assist, for example in cases of flood damage, with immediate needs, such as food, clothing, fuel, household goods and perhaps shelter. Assistance can be provided in cash or in kind. My Department's role in supporting the response to the recent flooding will primarily involve supporting the community welfare service in the provision of ENP and UNP funding in the short term and other supports where applicable to cater for the long-term effects of the flooding. Any support given will relate to damage to a person's home or loss of essential items. It will not extend to business or commercial losses.

My Department, working through the HSE, has a role in providing immediate humanitarian aid in response to serious flooding incidents. It has no role in providing compensation for losses arising from such incidents. Local community welfare officers are available to provide assistance on an individual basis where that is warranted. If any person is experiencing hardship as a result of the recent flooding, they should contact their local Community Welfare Officer in the first instance.

I again offer my sympathy to those affected by the recent flooding. I appreciate the disruption, frustration and fear which accompany such flood events. I assure them that every effort is being made by my officials in OPW, in conjunction with the local authorities, to identify flood relief measures that will help to counteract recurrence of flooding in similar situations. Timescale will vary depending on circumstances, including complexity of finding solutions, weather and ground conditions, environmental considerations, etc. Measures will be implemented as soon as possible.

Next week I hope to visit sites in Galway, Offaly and Clare where we have found solutions on which we are working. Funding is not an issue. The OPW has funding and has provided local authorities with funds to carry out works. The situation in Mayo is slightly more complicated and the Deputy is very familiar with some of the issues there. As soon as we have a solution, I assure the Deputy I will visit Mayo.

Mr. Ring

I thank the Minister of State.