asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs whether any steps are being taken to restore cable communication between Clare Island (County Mayo) and the mainland.
CEISTEANNA—QUESTIONS. ORAL ANSWERS. - CABLE COMMUNICATION (CLARE ISLAND).
The restoration of telegraphic communication between Clare Island and the mainland by submarine cable would necessitate the chartering of a specially equipped cable ship, at a very heavy cost, which would not be warranted.
A scheme of wireless communication with Clare Island has been sanctioned and will be brought into operation, if the result of the working of a similar system which has been recently established at another place on the West Coast proves satisfactory.
Mr. O'CONNELL
Might I ask the Parliamentary Secretary where the information contained in the answer to the question that a special mail steamer would be necessary came from? Who gave him that information?
The information is of course departmental. It is of course an absolute fact. We have not got any ship suitable for laying cables, and a specially equipped ship would have to be chartered from England to do so, the expenses of which we consider prohibitive.