Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 3 Dec 2014

Vol. 860 No. 2

Topical Issue Debate

Flood Relief Schemes Status

Deputy Joe Carey

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for selecting this important matter for debate. Major floods have taken place in Ennis through the years. Townspeople will recall serious floods in 1989, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2004 and late 2009. I welcome the fact that phase one of the Ennis flood relief scheme has stood up to the challenges posed by extreme weather events over the past couple of years. I look forward to the completion, in the next couple of months, of phase two of the scheme from Bank Place to Doora Bridge. Without the successful implementation of a flood relief plan in Ennis, there is little doubt further serious flood events would have taken place, with disastrous outcomes for local residents and business owners. Therefore, I welcome the serious flood alleviation work which has taken place in Ennis over recent years.

The matter I raise today is the third and last substantial element of flood alleviation works required for Ennis. The project is known as the lower Ennis flood relief scheme or the St. Flannan's and Ballybeg flood relief scheme. Few will forget the scene of flood waters pouring over the boundary wall at St. Flannan's College in late November 2009 in floods which were said to have been the worst in 800 years. Householders in housing estates off the Clare Road, on Clonroadmore and Tobartaiscain had their houses invaded by flood water, with devastating consequences. I thank God we have not had a similar weather event since. However, we need to prepare for such an event by providing this vital flood alleviation scheme.

The lower Ennis flood relief scheme involves the construction of a flood overflow culvert from St. Flannan's stream to the Clare Abbey flood plain, with associated overflow structure. It also involves the provision of a second flood overflow culvert from Ballybeg to the Clare Abbey flood plain, together with upgrading of the existing flood defence embankments between the Quin Road and the Clarecastle tidal barrage, including rehabilitation and construction of sluices and upgrading of the existing back drainage system. The St. Flannan’s and Ballybeg streams continue to pose serious flooding issues for householders in both Ennis and Clarecastle. Each winter, these streams are overwhelmed with water and at times of heavy rainfall, flooding is caused to houses and public roads. Much credit is owed to the outdoor staff of Clare County Council who battle against the elements with pumps to keep houses and roads free of water. However, this is an unsustainable solution. A permanent solution is required, namely, the provision of the lower Ennis flood relief scheme. It is essential that work commences on this important scheme in the coming months. People have waited patiently since 2009 for this problem to be finally tackled.

While much work has taken place on reports, planning and cost-benefit analysis by engineers in both the OPW and Clare County Council, people continue to ask me when work will start on the scheme. I have raised it many times with previous Ministers and I welcome the opportunity to ask the Minister of State when contractors will be appointed, when work will start on this long-anticipated scheme and how long the construction period is expected to be. Could the Minister also indicate how many construction jobs will be created during the construction phase of the project?

Minister of State at the Department of Finance (Deputy Simon Harris)

I thank Deputy Carey for raising this important matter and for giving me the opportunity to address the House and update the Deputy and the people of Ennis about it. During November 2009, following an exceptionally prolonged and intense wet spell, Saint Flannan's College in Ennis, County Clare, and built-up areas in its environs, experienced severe flooding from Flannan's stream. This flooding, which was reported to have been the worst in living memory, forced the college to close for several days in addition to flooding or cutting off access to a number of homes in nearby estates. Furthermore, important town access roads in the area were impassable and an electricity supply substation at the college was switched off as a precaution due to the high flood levels.

It was agreed that Clare County Council would commission consultants with a view to bringing forward proposals to address the problem in this area, with funding from my office, the Office of Public Works. The project, which is referred to by the council as Ennis south flood relief scheme, will complement the Ennis upper scheme, which was completed some years ago, and the Ennis lower flood relief scheme, which was completed this year. Clare County Council engaged Hydor Environmental Ltd. to produce a feasibility report on St. Flannan's Stream with a view to implementing a flood alleviation scheme. Following from this report, the preferred option consists of very substantial upgrading of approximately 2 km of embankments and the construction of two culverts approximately 1.4 km in length, together with a pump station and associated works.

All flood relief schemes that are funded by the OPW must meet certain criteria, including acceptability on cost-benefit grounds. The OPW and Clare County Council engaged in discussions over some months regarding aspects of the cost-benefit analysis of the scheme completed by the council's consultants. Arising from these discussions, the OPW has recently notified the council that it is now satisfied that the scheme is economically justifiable and has advised the council of its agreement that the project should proceed. I know that will come as great relief to Deputy Carey and others in Ennis.

Clare County Council is at present conducting a tender competition to appoint contractors to carry out the works. It is expected that a tenderer will be selected in the coming weeks, and the council hopes to be in a position to award the contract in late January or early February 2015. The council expects that works will then commence in late February or early March 2015. I am pleased to be able to provide that definitive timeline to the Deputy.

I want to assure the Deputy that I and the OPW are fully committed to supporting Clare County Council in implementing the scheme for Ennis south in the shortest possible timeframe. I can further confirm that the OPW has made provision for the scheme in its multi-annual budget profiles to 2017. Funding for this scheme is in place, and I hope and expect that Clare County Council will now appoint a tenderer as quickly as possible and that construction will commence in February or March 2015 to provide much-needed assurance, relief and confidence to the people of Ennis.

Regarding the number of construction jobs, I will ask my office to revert to the Deputy on that.

Deputy Joe Carey

It is very welcome news that this scheme will finally get off the ground. It is welcome also that contractors will be appointed in late January, with construction to commence in February or March. This is a much-needed scheme, the need for which I have outlined. I compliment the engineers in Clare County Council and the OPW on the work they have done to date. I compliment also the outdoor staff of Clare County Council for their work in the interim in keeping houses and public roads free of water.

This scheme is vital. I look forward to its moving to construction early in February or March. I hope that timeline is adhered to and that construction will commence on those dates. I thank the Minister for his comprehensive reply and this positive news.

Deputy Simon Harris

I am delighted to be able to provide Deputy Carey with this information and good news for Ennis. It is an issue he has pursued for some time with me and my predecessors.

It might be useful to inform the Deputy and the House that Clare County Council has estimated that the all-in cost of the scheme, inclusive of all professional fees and other costs, will be in the region of €3.6 million. As I have already outlined, it is expected that the scheme will commence in either February or March of 2015. The next significant date in terms of timelines is the appointment of a contractor, which I hope will happen very soon.

It is also worth noting the other flood relief projects that have been undertaken in the Ennis area. The Ennis lower flood relief scheme works were substantially completed in September of this year; there is a bit of routine snagging going on. The estimated outturn for that scheme is approximately €11.2 million. We also have the Ennis Fior Uisce scheme, the contract for which Clare County Council expects will be awarded in early January, with works commencing in early February. The works will consist of embankments and flood walls, along with a surface water pump station and associated works to the surface water and sceptre pipes.

Regarding Thomond Villas, Clare County Council is currently carrying out preparatory investigations with a view to submitting an application under the minor flood works and coastal protection scheme. That scheme is very useful to councils, because local authorities can apply to my office for funding of up to €500,000 to carry out minor flood relief works - minor in terms of cost but major in terms of the impact on people in communities across Ireland. That is something Clare County Council is considering with regard to Thomond Villas, and should we receive an application, we will endeavour to process that as efficiently as possible.

I look forward to the commencement of the Ennis south scheme in 2015 and to being there with Deputy Carey when the scheme is completed.

Ambulance Service Provision

Deputy Seamus Kirk

I thank the office of the Ceann Comhairle for selecting this most important topical issue. Yesterday, the Health Information and Quality Authority, HIQA, review of pre-hospital care emergency services was published. While there have been many positive developments in our ambulance services in the past ten years, the HIQA review of pre-hospital care emergency services is a cause for great concern. It found that the National Ambulance Service, and many hospitals, struggle to routinely meet their targets. Additionally, it found a lack of effective leadership, clear strategic planning and ongoing constructive co-operation between management and staff in the National Ambulance Service. This must be acted on with the greatest urgency.

Alarmingly, the report tells us that a number of staff reported that they did not have appropriate technical knowledge for their positions. HIQA also says it is unacceptable that, owing to the lack of clinical audit in the National Ambulance Service, quality assurance of clinical care is very limited, especially for staff who have completed training.

The review also highlights the deficiencies in dispatch and response. Three different computer-aided dispatch systems were in use at the time of HIQA's review. Those systems are not integrated, which means the National Ambulance Service continues to operate as six different services within defined geographical areas rather than as one national entity. That means there appears to be limited visibility of ambulance resources outside the geographically defined areas.

The most disquieting finding is that there is a lack of effective leadership, clear strategic planning and ongoing constructive co-operation between the management and staff of the National Ambulance Service.

This must be acted on with the greatest urgency. It is alarming that a number of staff reported that they did not have the appropriate training knowledge.

The disjointed relationship between the National Ambulance Service and the Dublin Fire Brigade is also highlighted in the review. Both bodies should move swiftly to publish the joint action plans that HIQA is recommending.

It is clear there is a need for more resources in our ambulance services, just as it is clear that there is a need to better manage those resources. The Government must act on the former and the National Ambulance Service must act on the latter. It seems from the reports today that the HSE has admitted that urgently needed improvements to the ambulance service will have to be delayed because of a lack of resources. The HSE is indicating now that longer target response times may be introduced for ambulances in rural areas compared with those operating in cities.

With regard to first responders, the National Ambulance Service seeks to have one on the scene of an emergency call within seven minutes and 59 seconds in at least 75% of cases. The best monthly results for ECHO calls involving immediately life-threatening cardiac and respiratory arrest was 58%. The best result for DELTA calls involving other life-threatening situations was 34%, just over one in three.

HIQA says that the National Ambulance Service demonstrated consistent underperformance in the efficiency of call taking and the processing of emergency calls. That has contributed to poor response times to ECHO and DELTA calls.

I am glad the Minister for Health is in the House to take this important item. What action does the Government plan to take in light of this report?

Minister for Health (Deputy Leo Varadkar)

I very much welcome the HIQA report on the ambulance service, which was requested by my predecessor, the former Minister, Deputy Reilly, some time ago. The report provides us with an opportunity to reflect on the progress made in pre-hospital emergency services and to acknowledge the challenges and opportunities ahead.

I am aware there are shortcomings in the current service provision. However, I assure the House that I am committed to improving services and performance.

The National Ambulance Service is modernising and reconfiguring its services so they are delivered in an appropriate and timely manner. A significant reform programme is under way for a clinically driven, nationally co-ordinated system supported by improved technology.

The emergency services have come a long way in recent years, from providing basic care and transport to advanced and sophisticated treatment for people in crisis. While the report confirms that we are on the right path in terms of service reform, it also sets out much of what remains to be done. Many issues identified in the report have been dealt with or are prioritised to be dealt with in 2015. A key component of reform of the ambulance service is the single national control centre in Tallaght, with backup in Ballyshannon. This will be completed in 2015 and, with the single computer aided dispatch system, provide the opportunity to further improve call taking and dispatching.

With the recent transfer of the Limerick control centre to the national platform, call taking and dispatch functions are now separated in all National Ambulance Service control rooms. The ambulance turnaround framework, to address ambulance delays at hospitals, is being implemented. The national service plan provides for 47 new ambulances next year. In addition, the 50 plus intermediate care vehicles are doing a lot of the work that previously fell to be done by the emergency fleet.

The HIQA report highlights a lack of clinical audit in the National Ambulance Service and this is of great concern. However, I am pleased that funding is provided in the 2015 service plan to initiate effective clinical auditing for the first time. Funding is also provided to expand the number of community first responders and to go a long way towards ending on call in the west.

While an extra €5.4 million has been provided for the National Ambulance Service in 2015, it is not all about resources. One of the most valuable matters identified in the HIQA report is how much more could be done with current resources. An example is dynamic dispatch. Too many ambulances spend too much time waiting in fire stations, ambulance control centres or at hospitals when they could be dynamically dispatched like so many other fleets. From where ambulance calls are going to come is predictable; they rarely come from next door to the ambulance station. We must examine alternative models of care, given that every patient who calls an ambulance does not need one and certainly does not need to go to an accident and emergency unit. In many countries, as little as 60% of the people who call an ambulance are taken to an accident and emergency unit.

The report is particularly critical of the relationship between the National Ambulance Service and Dublin Fire Brigade. This is a long-standing issue which has not been addressed to date. The HIQA report, with the awaited capacity and Dublin ambulance review, will give us a clear evidence base to finally establish a fully integrated service in the Dublin area. When we have the reports, I will consider them and request the HSE to prepare an action plan which I will bring to the Government. Taking the findings of the three reviews together, we will develop a comprehensive and coherent response. My Department will work with the HSE to ensure the development of an action plan, with timelines, to realise a new vision for ambulance services in Ireland.

Deputy Seamus Kirk

Every month the HSE management data report provides figures for the percentages of incidents responded to by a patient-carrying vehicle in 18 minutes and 59 seconds or less. It does not supply figures for first responders. Can we see the figures published on a monthly basis?

Deputy Leo Varadkar

I am not sure if the figures are calculated or available, but I will look into the matter. I am not sure if the Deputy has had a chance to read the report from cover to cover, but, for anyone who has, it is abundantly clear that an overemphasis on crude response times is not a good idea. In other parts of the world overemphasis on response times has caused ambulance services to pull out of rural areas because the times set were not achievable. This effectively handed services over to helicopters, which is not the right or the best thing to do. We must be careful, therefore, about how we address the issue of response times. The Deputy knows rural Ireland well and that a call time of less than eight minutes would be very difficult to achieve in many parts of the country, short of having an ambulance in every parish or firm. We want to move towards a clinical audit to actually find out what happens to patients. Where someone is not reached by an ambulance in eight minutes and 30 seconds, he or she may be defibrillated, intubated and recover in hospital. That is considered to be a failure, yet someone could be reached within three or four minutes and die in the ambulance, but it is considered a success, which is absurd. That is why we must move towards having a proper clinical audit to find out exactly what happens to patients from the time they call a ambulance to the time they reach the hospital. I am glad that we are moving towards a clinical audit for the first time in 2015. The Dublin Fire Service does some of this work already.

Graffiti Incidence

Deputy Robert Dowds

This issue is by no means the most important before us, but it is a regular niggle. I have been approached by one of the many groups in my constituency involved in the Tidy Towns competition. In Clondalkin, Palmerstown and Lucan there are active Tidy Towns groups which have done a great deal to improve the public ambiance of our area and I greatly appreciate their work. In other parts of the greater Dublin area various groups, including businesses, have done a great deal to improve the layout of their areas. However, one scourge that affects a great number of places in Dublin and other parts of the country, with which I am not so familiar, is graffiti which undermines the work of the many people who have done so much to deal with the litter problem in Dublin and its environs. It also damages the reputation of the city. The Minister for Health, Deputy Leo Varadkar, previously held the tourism brief and knows how important it is to present ourselves in the best light. In asking that the graffiti issue be tackled, I am doing something that will be of general benefit to the city and the country as a whole. It costs the four Dublin local authorities €600,000 per year to tackle the problem. This money could be better spent on other things.

Other cities around the world have a problem with graffiti and some have come up with innovative ideas to tackle it. I would appreciate it if this information could be passed on to the relevant Minister, the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Alan Kelly. In Chicago the sale of aerosol cans is restricted to those over 18 years and people must provide pictorial evidence of identity and sign for the cans purchased. That would help to tackle the issue, although I assume legislation or by-laws would help to deal with it also. I would be grateful if we could make some moves toward sorting out this problem.

Deputy Leo Varadkar

I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Alan Kelly. I assure the Deputy that I am fully aware of the blight on communities which graffiti causes, both in the greater Dublin area and nationally, and that the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government is totally committed to tackling the issues of graffiti and vandalism.

Under the Litter Pollution Acts 1997 to 2009, primary responsibility for management and enforcement responses to litter pollution, including the defacement of structures by writing or other marks, lies with local authorities. The role of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government is to provide the legislative framework within which they can perform this task. It is a matter for each local authority to decide the most appropriate public awareness and clean-up actions for graffiti, taking account of local circumstances and priorities. Each local authority must determine the level of expenditure on individual local services as part of its annual estimates process and prioritise its resources accordingly.

Section 19 of the Litter Pollution Act 1997 makes it an offence to deface property visible from a public place without the written authority of the relevant owner, occupier or person in charge. A local authority or its agents may, on such terms and conditions as may be agreed by it with the occupier, enter and take remedial action to remove or otherwise remedy the defacement.

Section 20 is a complementary provision that enables a local authority, in the interests of amenity or of the environment, to take remedial action against graffiti, irrespective of whether it has been put up with the consent of the owner or occupier. The local authority may serve a notice on the occupier requiring steps to be taken to remove or otherwise remedy the defacement in a specified period of not less than seven days. Failure to comply with a notice is an offence. In the case of an offence, the local authority may give effect to the notice and recover costs. The local authority may also, by arrangement with the occupier, take steps to remedy the defacement. It is an offence to obstruct or impede a local authority in its actions under sections 19 and 20.

Maximum penalties attaching to littering and graffiti offences are substantial and include an on-the-spot fine of €150. The Protection of the Environment Act 2003 introduced the possibility of conviction on indictment for litter and graffiti offences with a maximum fine of €130,000. The maximum fine for summary conviction in the District Court is €3,000.

In addition to the Litter Pollution Acts, the Criminal Damage Act 1991 also provides for the offences of damaging or defacing property. The Garda takes the defacing of and damage to property very seriously and, when such offences are detected, perpetrators are processed through the courts or via the juvenile liaison system, as appropriate.

As part of the overall response in dealing with graffiti, the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government operates an anti-litter and anti-graffiti awareness grant scheme whereby local authorities can apply for funding for projects aimed at raising awareness of litter and graffiti issues in their functional areas. Under the scheme, the maximum grant allowed per project may be up to 70% of the cost involved. Local authorities are asked to focus their activities under the scheme on young people and in particular on schools and community groups with an emphasis on encouraging long-term behavioural change.

Grants can cover a broad range of measures to raise public awareness and to stimulate anti-litter and anti-graffiti activity at local level. Measures such as local clean-ups, primary and secondary school competitions, the provision of anti-litter and anti-graffiti materials, videos, posters, information leaflets, and anti-litter and anti-graffiti exhibitions are eligible for grant aid. In excess of €840,000 was allocated to local authorities from the environment fund under this scheme in 2014.

The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Alan Kelly, is aware of the issues arising for communities where graffiti presents a significant challenge. In addition to the measures outlined earlier, there is also the website, www.fixyourstreet.ie, a service launched in August 2011 whereby non-emergency issues can be reported to a local council. Fixyourstreet.ie consists of a publicly accessible website with associated mobile technologies on which issues such as graffiti, road defects, street lighting, water leaks, drainage issues and litter or illegal dumping can be reported.

The solution to graffiti lies in a combination of different approaches, including education to promote individuals taking responsibility for the behaviour and anti-graffiti initiatives supported by the Department, as well as enforcement through the Litter Pollution Acts and, where appropriate, the Criminal Damage Act. The Minister is satisfied local authorities have adequate powers under the Litter Pollution Acts 1997 and 2009 to tackle the problem of graffiti and have adequate resources to discharge their responsibilities.

Deputy Robert Dowds

The Minister has a slightly longer version of the circulated reply.

I appreciate the reply. I know anyone putting up graffiti is breaking the law with measures in place that can be taken against them and there have been cases where this has happened. However, an alternative approach is needed such as restricting access to aerosols. Not having access to the materials used to put graffiti up would have a positive and beneficial impact on our environment. There are two ways in which this problem could be addressed; one is the legal route in terms of the application of fines, etc., and the other is to restrict access to the materials used by graffiti - I should not say artists - but the Minister knows what I mean. That would have a beneficial impact on the city and indeed the country. I would appreciate if this could be passed on to the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government.

Deputy Leo Varadkar

I thank the Deputy and share his concern about the blight graffiti can have on communities. I will ensure the Minister, Deputy Kelly, is advised of the Deputy’s comments in this debate.

Job Losses

Deputy Michael Lowry

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for affording me the opportunity to raise an issue of paramount concern to the 360 employees of Lisheen Mine, County Tipperary, the entire community of Moyne and the wider region, and for allowing me to discuss what stands to be one of the most devastating losses of employment ever seen in the premier county.

Lisheen Mine is a lead and zinc mine located in Moyne-Templetuohy outside of Thurles. It is in its second decade of operations and is one of the largest producers of zinc concentrates in Europe. Since its opening, it has proved to be the lifeblood of the small rural economy, providing quality employment, state-of-the-art infrastructure, invaluable community supports and delivering a degree of security in an area that is otherwise devoid of industry. After 17 years of employment and income for countless families, Lisheen Mine has confirmed it is progressing with its phased wind-down of operations with a voluntary redundancy programme that will facilitate the exit of almost 40 employees by March 2015. Further scaling back of operations is expected in the new year with the remaining 300 jobs being lost by October 2015. A small number of staff will be maintained after October for the final closure and site remediation.

While it was always known this was a finite resource and a fully funded mine closure and redundancy plan has been agreed, the commencement of the wind-down has sent alarm bells ringing across the entire region. The reality is that with less than a year to go until the complete shutdown of operations on the site, the Government is woefully unprepared for the imminent redundancy of 360 individuals, as no alternative company or industry has been identified for the Lisheen site.

The impact of the loss of Lisheen Mine, not just to the Moyne-Templetuohy area but to Thurles and the surrounding areas, is unquantifiable both in monetary and other terms. The mine is a key local employer and provides much of the employment in the wider area, being one of the largest employers in Tipperary. While the company has taken considerable steps to provide training and education to its employees, we are now facing a situation whereby 360 people are becoming unemployed with 70% of these being from the local area. This will have a devastating impact on the countless families who relied totally on Lisheen for employment and whose income will now be decimated.

This loss of income in turn will have a potentially ruinous effect on the local economy. Lisheen Mine puts a huge amount of money into the local economy in the form of wages to staff and expenditure on goods and services. Once the facility ceases operations there will be a mammoth reduction in income to the region and an unimaginable loss of spending power in the villages and towns. Lisheen's employees support the local businesses and services, whether it is only in buying milk or the newspaper on the way home, dropping into the local pub for a drink, having a car serviced or even having children enrolled in the local national school. Aside from direct employment, Lisheen Mine has also supported many secondary and support jobs in the local communities through the supply of transport, mining supplies, security and catering. The consequences of the closure of Lisheen are far-reaching and touch on every aspect of day-to-day life.

Lisheen Mine is not alone an employer but has put itself at the heart of the local community through its support for sporting, educational and cultural initiatives. The site's contribution to the economic and social life of the area is greatly valued and appreciated and the Lisheen management team developed excellent relationships with the local community. Since 2008, Lisheen Mine has donated close to €2 million towards sustainable projects for the area including donations to various organisations in the fields of arts, sports, health and education.

Where do we go from here? This is a strategically placed, turnkey condition development with unrivalled infrastructure and facilities. It offers enormous potential for additional or alternative industrial development boasting a land bank of 1,125 acres, an on-site 110 kV substation grid connection, 30 wind turbines, and an on-site fresh water supply of 50 million litres per day along with a water treatment plant.

It is conveniently located close to the M8 motorway, almost equidistant from Dublin and Cork and the port and airport facilities they offer, not to mention the fact that there is a highly skilled and experienced local work force.

While a task force has been established to identify opportunities for alternative employment creation, I feel there must be a more concerted, visible effort by the Government and the IDA to attract an alternative industry. At present the future of Lisheen is shrouded in uncertainty and doubt and a concerned community is being left in the dark. We are entering the 11th hour and the time to save these jobs or provide alternatives is running out. In the next four months the first casualties will be felt and I am urging the Minister of State to step up efforts to ensure that Moyne is not forgotten.

Minister of State at the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation (Deputy Gerald Nash)

I thank Deputy Lowry for raising this issue.

The confirmation by Vendata that Lisheen Mine is progressing its phased wind-down of operations at the lead and zinc mines outside Thurles, in accordance with plans agreed with employees in 2009, is of course to be regretted. I appreciate that the closure, although planned well in advance and not unexpected, will have a devastating impact on the 360 employees and their families.

Since 1997, the company has provided valuable employment in the area. As everybody involved in mining knows, each mine is a finite resource that eventually becomes exhausted. In the case of Lisheen it was expected to be exhausted by 2013 but the success of mineral recovery at the mine has extended its life by two years to October 2015. The company, in the exercise of its corporate social responsibility, has initiated a comprehensive out-placement programme for all staff members to provide them with a competitive edge in the jobs market.

In 2012 the Tipperary county manager approached Lisheen to initiate a task force to look at replacement industries post-closure. That task force was made up of representatives of Tipperary County Council, IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and Lisheen Mine. The task force was sidelined when BEET Ireland approached Lisheen with a view to setting up its beet processing and ethanol plant at the site. Unfortunately, despite lengthy discussions, this project did not proceed. The task force has been re-activated under the chairmanship of Liz O'Donnell, with the full support of the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Alan Kelly. It now includes the head of the Tipperary local enterprise office, LEO, in addition to representatives from IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and Tipperary County Council. The enterprise development agencies under the aegis of my Department, IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and the Tipperary local enterprise office, are working closely with one another and with local stakeholders, including Lisheen Mine management, with a view to finding a replacement industry for the area.

As the Deputy said, the Lisheen site is comprised of 1,125 acres and is strategically located adjacent to the M8 motorway. The site is well placed for both national distribution and export. It has its own electrical substation, ample water supply, a water treatment plant and other logistical and infrastructural benefits that make it attractive for investment. The nearby town of Thurles is on the main Dublin to Cork intercity railway line. I know from speaking to him that the Minister, Deputy Kelly, engaged with the IDA, officials in my Department, interested parties and the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Richard Bruton, prior to my appointment, to scope out opportunities for potential investors.

IDA Ireland is actively marketing the Lisheen Mine site to potential clients and I am glad to be able to inform the Deputy that, following a presentation made by IDA Ireland to a potential client in the United States, the potential client made a preliminary site visit to the Lisheen site in recent weeks. Of course, it is very early days and the Deputy will appreciate that I am unable to elaborate further at this time but it is very positive news that illustrates the Government's commitment to ensuring we identify investors for the site.

Meanwhile, the Tipperary local enterprise office has delivered start your own business boot camps and held mentor clinics on site to assist employees contemplating starting their own businesses. This type of intervention will continue up to and after the closure of the mine. I am hopeful that the area will attract the sort of industry its location merits.

Deputy Michael Lowry

I must remind the Minister of State that the creation of a task force does not absolve the Government of responsibility in this matter. It is barely credible that we still do not have an alternative four months from the first termination of employment in this matter. I appreciate that the task force is very committed, has worked hard and is using its best endeavours to attract alternatives but we need more input from IDA Ireland, led by the Government. This is an exceptional site with all of the attributes, services and facilities required by major manufacturing industries. We must ensure we do not give up on the idea of attracting a major industry and settle for small industries instead, just so we can say the site is still open.

I appreciate the response of the Minister of State but I ask that he and the Government be conscious of the fact that this issue has enormous consequences for the economy and the lives of many people in the Tipperary area. We need a positive and active response.

Deputy Gerald Nash

I appreciate Deputy Lowry's remarks and reiterate the Government's commitment to working with the task force, IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and other relevant agencies to ensure we can continue to attract employment and industry to the area. The aim is to address the issues that will emerge after the closure of the Lisheen site. It is an attractive site and I have learned more about it in recent days. The site has huge potential and the IDA recognises this - that is why the area has been marketed to potential US clients. There was a site visit in recent weeks and this is a significant development upon which I hope the IDA will build.

Ireland has had success in recent months in continuing to attract the sort of foreign direct investment, FDI, we seek. A day does not pass without a significant jobs announcement made by the Minister, Deputy Bruton, and me. The IDA has contributed in terms of FDI and Enterprise Ireland helps indigenous exporting businesses. We are in a positive place and I am passionate about the need for balanced regional development. It is very important that the economic revival we are experiencing is felt across the country and we must ensure there is significant investment in areas like Tipperary, my constituency and across the country. People must have access to the opportunities to which they are entitled. I assure the Deputy that the Government will continue to work with the IDA on this site as it is significant. It is important that we create opportunities for the people currently working in Lisheen.