Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Thursday, 11 Feb 1999

Vol. 500 No. 3

Written Answers. - Harbours and Piers.

P. J. Sheehan

Ceist:

26 Mr. Sheehan asked the Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources if finance will be provided by his Department to commence the development plan for Baltimore Harbour in 1999; and if he will seek co-funding for this project from the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands and the Department of Tourism, Sport and Recreation. [3719/99]

Liz McManus

Ceist:

47 Ms McManus asked the Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources the plans, if any, he has for a new port at Arklow, County Wicklow; whether he will incorporate Arklow and Wicklow ports; if so, when; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3810/99]

Michael Ferris

Ceist:

50 Mr. Ferris asked the Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources if he has made any statement regarding the privatisation of any commercial port or any part thereof; his views on the future ownership of commercial harbours; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3814/99]

Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources (Dr. Woods)

I propose to take questions Nos. 26, 47 and 50 together.

An Action Programme for the Millennium identifies as a key priority "transferring small harbours to local control to develop marine leisure activities" in the context of securing and enhancing the livelihoods of the coastal communities who depend on the sea for their future. Partnership 2000 commits to "review the strategic options for the future development and management of declining commercial regional ports". The strategy statement 1998-2000 of the Department commits as a key objective "to facilitate the restructuring of the roles of sub-regional ports".

Within these contexts consultants have been contracted to undertake a review of State regional ports and harbours with a cargo throughput of less than 250,000 tonnes to develop a general strategic framework for these ports and harbours, having regard to their differing conditions and potential, and to recommend generic and port/harbour related models and options which will best deliver the objectives of the strategic framework.

The review of these 16 State regional ports around the country includes Baltimore, Arklow and Wicklow harbours. The regional ports and harbours covered by the study currently operate under the structures of the 1946 Harbours Act and range from those with busy commercial traffic to others catering for a mix of uses including seafishing and marine leisure as well as some which have experienced a severe decline in terms of commercial and seaborne trade. The intention is to chart the way forward for these ports and set out a long-term, coherent and sustainable development plan for their future and for the people whose livelihoods they support as well as identifying the best development options, including local authority control in terms of ownership, financing and activities/operations.

Consideration of any development proposals and options for future ownership and management, use of assets and activities and operations of the regional harbours will follow the outcome of the consultants review, which is expected to be completed in a matter of months. An extensive consultation process has been undertaken as part of the review to incorporate the views of all interested parties prior to determination of the nature of restructuring of the ports concerned.

I have also instigated a review of the operation of the 1996 Harbours Act, in conjunction with the Irish Ports Association and the port companies. The intention is to establish whether the legal framework under which the major State ports operate, is constraining in any way their ability to deliver on their commercial mandate both now and in the future. The review will also address the rapidly changing international picture of ports development and modernisation to establish if lessons can be learned from the experience of others. We need to be satisfied that port managements at the nine commercial State port companies are not being organisationally constrained by the present legal framework and also that private sector involvement and investment is not discouraged by it.

The management framework for ports must be conducive to the most cost effective use of port facilities. It must look to complete openness in provision of port services and define new partnerships between public and private sectors in investment financing and assets management. Ideally we need to take a fresh look at what the respective roles of the public and private sectors should be post-millennium. The ports industry has a catalytic role to play in maintaining the competitiveness of our external trade and in improving links between transport modes and must be best positioned to do so.

In relation to ports ownership including the privatisation issue raised, I do not wish to pre-empt the outcome of the review of State regional ports under the Harbour Act, 1946, and the review of the operation of the Harbours Act, 1996, under which the commercial State port companies function.