Vol. 453 No. 2
25 Mr. D. Ahern asked the Minister for the Marine if he will introduce regulations to make it obligatory to have fluorescent material on all wet suits manufactured and sold in this country in view of the recent tragedies involving canoeing and windsurfing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7469/95]
126 Mr. Deasy asked the Minister for the Marine if he will make it compulsory for the manufacturers of safety and protective clothing worn at sea to incorporate reflective strips in the design of their garments which would assist with sea rescues and may help prevent the loss of life at sea; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7334/95]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 25 and 126 together.
The Department of the Marine is currently engaged in a consultative process with various representative organisations engaged in canoeing and windsurfing on a range of measures to improve the safety of their activities. When this process is completed it is the intention to publish comprehensive safety guidelines. In addition, I expect to be in a position to issue, within a matter of weeks, new safety leaflets for sea canoeists and windsurfers, as part of the Department's safety awareness campaign.
These safety leaflets will include advice that sea canoeists and windsurfers should put reflective tape on their craft and on their protective clothing. This would greatly assist their detection by the marine rescue services in the event of an emergency.
There is no legislative basis available to me at present to oblige manufacturers of water sportswear to incorporate reflective strips in their products. Even if such legislation were in place in Ireland, its impact would be almost negligible, as most of the equipment is manufactured in the UK and elsewhere abroad. I understand that the UK authorities have no plans to introduce such requirements for manufacturers.
I also understand that such reflective material is not generally a standard feature of wet suits and safety equipment. The bringing in of mandatory regulations in this regard would raise a whole range of practical difficulties, not least the problems of enforcement, having regard, in particular, to the large volume of existing equipment already in use.
As I said at the outset, our aim is to develop new guidelines in this whole area and working with the various representative organisations to increase safety awareness and especially to promote the wearing of reflective strips.
I thank the two Deputies for putting down these questions. They have been in the forefront of bringing these matters to my attention as they live in constituencies where serious accidents have occurred in recent months.
I thank the Minister for his response. I am reminded of the time I put down a parliamentary question to the Minister for the Environment. I had a constituent who believed that if all bikes manufactured in the country had mandatory back and front lights, it would possibly reduce many of the deaths on our roads. However, as in this case, there are a number of difficult avenues to go down before that could ever be achieved.
I thank the Minister also for meeting representatives of the Windsurfing Association and the partner of the person who tragically lost his life in the recent windsurfing accident. I asked the Minister this question when we met, but is there anything more he can do in putting an onus on retailers of canoes and windsurfing boards? Will he insist that the sellers of these goods, which are manufactured mainly outside of this country, be required to provide a course in basic windsurfing and canoeing as part of an overall package? What other action can the Department take in regard to education and liaison with clubs and local authorities in whose jurisdictions much of our coastline is located?
As the Deputy said, we had an informative meeting with representatives of the Windsurfing Association and I know the Deputy is an expert in that field. My Department will place most of its emphasis on producing an informative safety leaflet which will be distributed not only to clubs and organisations but also to the main stores that sell this equipment so that they might be persuaded to include a copy of the leaflet when selling such equipment. The leaflet will obtain advice on the necessity to take lessons before getting involved in what are potentially dangerous activities for people who have no experience of them. I am not very familiar with canoeing but windsurfers, by their very nature, are individualistic. Many of them are not members of clubs; they simply head off to the nearest beach whenever they choose. It is difficult to deal with that in safety terms but if we can produce this leaflet and distribute it widely, that would be a step in the right direction.
Another point that arose at the recent meeting was whether we could persuade local authorities to place notices in areas known to have dangerous tidal conditions, etc. That is a wider question and local authorities can experience difficulty in this regard if they place notices only in areas where drownings have occurred. They can be reluctant to become involved in identifying dangerous areas. However, that is an issue for another day. My main objective is to produce this leaflet as soon as possible because the season is already upon us. We will review the position at the end of the season.
As a result of our meeting the Minister's officials will contact the Windsurfing Association to assist his Department in putting together the information leaflet. The Minister should, include in the leaflet useful telephone numbers, particularly the numbers of lifeboat stations in various localities. In the recent unfortunate incident in County Louth, a person drowned while windsurfing. His friends were unaware that one of the best lifeboat stations in the country, Clogherhead, was located nearby. Had they known that, the man would have been saved within five minutes but he lost his life because they were not aware of it.
That is an excellent suggestion. Has the Windsurfing Association put that suggestion to my Department?
I would think so, yes.
I spoke to a person recently who runs a windsurfing club in the Cork area and he told me that a leaflet such as this has been produced in the UK. He will get a copy of the leaflet and send it to my Department. We can then look at it and see whether we should include any other relevant points in the leaflet we intend to produce. My main concern is that we are approaching the June bank holiday weekend and I do not know whether the leaflet will be ready in time having regard to the level of consultation required. I regret we did not start this a month earlier but I am moving as quickly as I can in this regard.
My question is not confined to windsurfers and canoeists but concerns leisure sports at sea in general, whether it be canoeing, surf boarding, yachting, speed boating, etc. The Minister should introduce statutory regulations covering this area because until that is done, we will not see the type of action required. The two young canoeists who were drowned in Dunmore East some months ago would have been saved if they had fluorescent markings on their wetsuits. That is the view of the lifeboat service in the area. Prior to that incident, the lifeboat crew had rescued a person involved in a boating accident who has fluorescent markings on his wetsuit. They had no problem in identifying him. These fluorescent markings could mean the difference between life and death and the requirement for their use should be put on a statutory basis. Lives are being lost because of this and people must be protected against themselves. The Minister is a yachtsman and he knows the dangers involved in these activities.
The majority of people involved in sailing are members of clubs affiliated to the Irish Sailing Association. They have strict safety codes. A person cannot go offshore unless the boat contains all the necessary safety equipment and checks are made before races are held. I think self-regulation is still the best way and I am not convinced of the merits of a statutory legal framework for people's leisure.
I understand the point the Deputy is making but it is better to educate people that their own clubs and organisations should accept greater responsibility for training and proving a safety and rescue service. Too often we jump to the conclusion that we must make more laws to deal with situations but then we cannot implement them and make a fool of ourselves. Bringing in statutory provisions for people's leisure would be the last resort.
By law motor cyclists have to wear helmets.
In anticipation of the season that is upon us I suggest that we insert newspaper advertisements recommending that people should not only buy equipment with fluorescent markings but accessories with such markings. The Road Safety Council managed to organise this when people were asked to wear armbands when walking at night.
I omitted to mention, and I should have mentioned this to Deputy Deasy also, that apart from the separate initiative on canoes and wind surfing, the Department has an annual safety awareness programme for all users of water and we have increased our investment in it this year. In areas around the country where water sports and activities take place we have very large warning signs and the measures the Deputy mentioned are included on it. I cannot recall if we had notices in the newspapers but I will check that for the Deputy.
I see too many drownings in my area and I too wish to refer to the drownings that Deputy Deasy mentioned. Does the Minister accept that inexperienced people who go to sea have no fear of the water because quite possibly they have never been to sea before? I am inclined to agree with Deputy Deasy that we must take a stronger line. Mr. John Walsh, the coxswain of the Dunmore East lifeboat says it should be obligatory to have fluorescent strips and had that been the case in the instance mentioned by Deputy Deasy the people would have been saved.
We cannot compel manufacturers outside this country to put fluorescent strips on all equipment but we could compel individuals to use them. We are recommending that in the leaflets we are producing. I am reluctant to introduce a statutory requirement of that kind as it is very heavy handed. We should try to get our message across through education and other methods rather than through the heavy hand of the law.
That is wishful thinking.
I think there would be a bad reaction to that.
In conjunction with his deliberations on what his Department can do, will the Minister liaise with those involved in the day-to-day search and rescue service? The reason I tabled a question asking for regulations on fluorescent strips on these garments is that people who are involved in the day-to-day-rescue service have requested it. Similarly if the person involved in the Louth tragedy had been wearing fluorescent strips it is possible that person would have been saved.
While I accept what Deputy Deasy said about yachts and other craft there is some standard rescue equipment on them such as radios and so on. Even someone in a canoe is more protected than a person who is wind surfing. Generally the people who take up wind surfing have never been on the water before.
I accept that. I am as interested as anybody, and possibly more so, in people using those strips. We are arguing only about the means of achieving that. I am reluctant to enforce it by legislation if I can do it some other way. Deputy Deasy says it is wishful thinking but I hope through a continual education process we will improve the position. With or without regulations, we will unfortunately have accidents.
