The meeting referred to by the Deputy arose from a commitment given in Dáil Éireann on 13 February 2014 that the accountable bodies with an interest in this matter would meet to determine if anything could be done to avert the disposal of the Naomh Éanna. The Deputy will appreciate that a private company such as the Irish Ship and Barge Fabrication Company is not an accountable body in this matter so the issue of excluding it from the meeting did not arise. I also wish to point out that the decision to dispose of the Naomh Éanna was not taken by me but by its owners, the Irish Nautical Trust. The Naomh Éanna has been moored at Grand Canal Dock since 1989 when it was found to no longer meet health and safety requirements to operate as a passenger-carrying vessel. Unfortunately, the ship has deteriorated substantially in the past 20 years and presents a real risk in the Grand Canal Basin, in the heart of Dublin's Docklands. In April 2013, a report on the hull condition of the vessel, commissioned by its owners, highlighted serious safety concerns. Based on the report’s findings, the Irish Nautical Trust issued a ‘Notice to Vacate ’ to both of the businesses that had been operating from the vessel.
I am advised that very significant investment would be required to preserve the already unstable hull of the vessel and to bring the vessel to the point where it would be safe and insurable. I am further advised that the vessel's owners do not have the financial resources to deal with these issues. In the circumstances, Waterways Ireland offered to arrange for the removal and disposal of the ship on behalf of the Irish Nautical Trust. Waterways Ireland made this offer as the property owners of the Grand Canal Dock because of the continuing serious risk posed by the condition of the Naomh Éanna, the disruption and expense that would be involved were it to sink in the Grand Canal Dock and the absence of any firm indication that the very significant level finance required to make it safe and insurable was potentially available. The Irish Nautical Trust accepted the offer and confirmed its approval to Waterways Ireland to dispose of the vessel on its behalf.
In relation to the suggestion that decisions on the vessel's future be deferred for three months, the Deputy will be aware that I advised Seanad Éireann on 26 February that interested individuals or groups who wish to restore the vessel now have until 31 March to come up with a realistic proposal. Any such proposal would have to be based on a credible, definitive business plan with access to the required finance and, in that regard, I must re-iterate that there is no question of State funding being made available. In view of the serious safety issues posed by the Naomh Éanna, it will not be feasible to delay action to deal with those issues beyond that time frame.
