I will call on the Deputies who tabled questions to the Minister for Finance in the order in which they submitted their questions to the Ceann Comhairle's office.
Private Notice Questions. - Flood Relief.
asked the Minister for Finance the action his Department has taken to ensure that urgent flood prevention measures are put in place at high risk locations along the River Tolka, particularly at Botanic Avenue and Ballybough in Dublin city; the need for funding from central Government for this emergency work to be made available to prevent the recurrence of recent flooding causing devastation to hundreds of homes, with appropriate compensation for the many victims of last week's flooding in Dublin city and other areas of the country.
asked the Minister for Finance his proposals to assist those who have suffered severe financial losses as a result of the serious flooding last week, especially in the Drumcondra, Glasnevin and Ballybough areas of Dublin; the steps he will take to ensure that such disastrous flooding is averted in the future; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
asked the Minister for Finance the immediate remedial works which are being undertaken to prevent another horrendous flood in the Tolka valley and its tributaries; the long-term assessment which is being undertaken on the causes of this occurrence; the structural changes which can be put in place; and the specific time scale for action on the resultant recommendations.
asked the Minister for Finance the steps he is taking immediately to relieve flooding of homes in Drumcondra, Clonee, Dunboyne, Mulhuddart and other areas by the River Tolka.
asked the Minister for Finance if he will report on the causes of the recent flooding in the Dublin and Meath areas; if he will investigate, in particular, whether planning decisions by local authorities were responsible for the severity of the flood damage.
I propose to answer all five questions together.
I wish to express sympathy on my own behalf, and that of the Government, to everyone affected by the flooding in recent days. It has been a traumatic time for people whose homes have been flooded.
Flooding has occurred in many parts of the country. The cause was exceptionally heavy rainfall during a two day period on 9 and 10 November which led to flooding of homes in Athlone, and again on 14 and 15 November which primarily affected the east of the country, particularly Dublin city, Meath and Kildare. On its own this concentrated heavy rainfall would not have been expected to have such disastrous consequences. However, when combined with two and a half times average rainfall in the month of October and the first two weeks in November it led to the disastrous consequences we have witnessed.
The immediate concern in this situation is, of course, to respond quickly to those who are affected by the flooding. Emergency plans were put into action by several local authorities. I commend the local authority staff, the Civil Defence, the Army, the Garda, the fire brigade, health authority staff and my own staff in the Office of Public Works who were on the spot straight away helping people whose homes were flooded and some whose travel arrangements were disrupted. The commitment of public service and voluntary staff in this type of situation is exceptional and deserves recognition.
As soon as the seriousness of the situation and the numbers of homes affected by the flooding became apparent, I asked my officials in the Office of Public Works to begin preparations for initiating a humanitarian aid scheme. The House will be aware that the Government has approved such schemes in similar situations in the past, most recently following the devastating flooding in Dublin city in February of this year. At its meeting today the Government approved my proposal to initiate a similar scheme in this case.
The scheme will be administered by the Red Cross on behalf of the Office of Public Works. Application forms for the scheme are available from the Red Cross at a freephone number, 1800 923 424 and at www.redcross.ie. The eligibility criteria are extreme hardship, homelessness, damage to homes and serious injury. The scheme does not provide for compensation for losses. It pro vides for assistance where extreme hardship has been suffered. The closing date for receipt of applications by the Red Cross is 6 December. Following this, the Red Cross will commence the process of evaluating applications and visiting all applicants to assess need. Payments will commence a number of weeks later.
The scheme will be funded from within existing financial allocations to the Office of Public Works. The extent of funding required will become apparent in the next few days as applications are received and more information is collated on the extent of damage caused. Recent comments in the media suggest that approval of funding for this scheme somehow represents a reversal of Government decisions on the Estimates. This is not the case. These schemes are, of their nature, entirely unpredictable and it is not the practice to provide for them in advance in the Estimates.
The flooding in Dublin city and Meath arose from the River Tolka and its tributaries. The Tolka has a history of carrying significant run-off flows within its watercourse and has flooded frequently, most recently in November 2000. The catchment area of the river falls within the functional area of three local authorities – Meath and Fingal County Councils and Dublin City Council. As the lower and middle catchments of the river, in particular, and certain concentrated areas within the upper catchment have witnessed significant increases in land development, the risk of flood damage to property and infrastructure has also increased. There has never been a fully inclusive analysis of the river's behaviour under a full range of potential floods and certainly there has been no investigation of the catchment's response to severe rainfall as it is currently developed and as planned to be developed.
In June 2001, Dublin City Council commissioned the greater Dublin strategic drainage study – GDSDS – which is a multi-million euro engineering study of the strategic drainage requirements of the greater Dublin area. Given the history of flooding in the Tolka, on the initiative of the Office of Public Works the city council agreed to include a study of the Tolka in the GDSDS. The flooding element of the study is funded by the Office of Public Works at a cost of €870,000. The study is expected to be completed in May 2003. Surveying is now completed and the consultants are commencing work on the hydraulic model of the catchment. Meath and Fingal County Councils are also participating in the study.
The aim of the study is that a comprehensive report will be produced that will include the development of a robust model representing the hydrological and hydraulic characteristics of the River Tolka catchment. Such a model will have the ability to map flood risk. Using model output, the technical and economic merit of various options for flood management, taking account of current and future land developments, will be presented within the report.
My officials in the Office of Public Works have confirmed that the consultants carrying out the study are not in a position to indicate at this stage what the findings of the study will be or what flood alleviation measures can be recommended. Neither is it possible to undertake interim works at specific locations. In the absence of the full report of the study any interim works could exacerbate flooding problems upstream or downstream. I have asked my officials in the Office of Public Works to ensure that the report is completed on time so that early consideration can be given to its findings.
Notwithstanding this, the Office of Public Works will provide assistance to Dublin City Council in dealing with the immediate effects of the flooding and we have been in discussions with the city engineer about this. I am referring here to repairs to walls, culverts and river banks which have been damaged in the flooding. Indeed, Office of Public Works staff were mobilised yesterday at the request of the city engineer to deal with the collapse of the river bank at Tolka Road. They are still working there today. The city council is rightfully taking the lead in dealing with these immediate needs and I assure the House that the Office of Public Works is available to assist in whatever way we can.
I remind the House that this is not a debate on the issue. Supplementary questions only may be asked and no statements can be allowed.
I pay tribute to the community spirit which sustained the people of the Ballybough, Clonliffe and Drumcondra areas of Dublin city during the recent floods.
The Minister of State has referred to the flooding in Botanic Avenue in November 2000. Last week this flooding was repeated at the same location and at Tolka Road, Distillery Road and Clonliffe Road in the Ballybough area. There are obvious works which need to be done at those locations. Bridges need to be either raised or replaced by ones which will not block rising flood waters. Large areas of embankment wall need to be replaced and significant dredging needs to be carried out.
Does the Minister of State agree that this work needs to be put in place as an interim action plan rather than waiting for a flood alleviation study which was first promised for the end of this year and then for April of next year? The Minister of State now tells us the study will not be ready until later next year. Will he make the money and staff available to do the necessary work at the blackspots which have histories of flooding? It is clear that the climate is changing and we have seen recurring episodes of heavy rainfall. People who have gone through the trauma of the recent flood – some for the second time in two years – fear that unless these measures are taken at blackspot locations they could be facing a third experience of similar flooding during the course of this win ter. I pay tribute, as the Minister of State has done, to Dublin City Council, the fire service, the Army and the other services for their response. However, this response took place when it was already too late and when hundreds of people's homes were devastated.
Will the Minister of State ensure that whatever interim measures are required at black spot locations, which are in a very limited area of Dublin city, be carried out? There would be no potential impact on other areas, but the measures are desperately needed at those locations to prevent further recurrence of the flooding that has caused such disruption, upset and devastation for many hundreds of families.
We certainly had evidence of the public spirit, but it is unfortunate we had to wait for such a tragedy to see it. The report from the consultants would not in any way recommend interim measures in respect of any of the black spots to which the Deputy referred. The indication might even be minor when he talks of raising or replacing bridges or building walls and there is—
These are low-level pedestrian bridges that clearly contributed to the flood.
The Minister of State is in possession.
A sum of €870,000 is being spent on consultants and experts, and they would not recommend any work in advance of the overall study being completed. The fallout from allowing the floods to go down faster or slower or building a wall anywhere can have devastating effects in exceptional circumstances. I need to stress again to the House that the circumstances were exceptional – there was exceptional rainfall for a month and a half and then we had an extreme case in which the rainfall of a month and a half fell in 36 hours. I hope the chances of those circumstances being repeated are slim, but in such circumstances the consequences of dealing with the black spot areas could be even more severe.
All the damage that has been done will be repaired and the Office of Public Works, in conjunction with Dublin City Council, is working on it at the moment. Until the black spots are identified by the consultants, I am not keen to recommend that we move on them.
That is condemning people to a repeat of what has happened already.
We may, if time permits, return to that.
Does the Minister of State not agree that the flooding of the Tolka last weekend was a disaster and that it could have been avoided? I too pay tribute to the people who suffered, the hundreds that have been evacuated from their homes. Their homes have been destroyed and all the family heirlooms and items in the ground floors are gone. Homes never come right after a flooding of this nature. People are now looking for reassurance that sufficient funding will be put in place so they will not be too much out of pocket and so they will not suffer from spiralling insurance costs or a refusal of insurance in the future. They also want to be reassured that this will not happen again.
I found the statement of the Minister of State that there will be no interim measures introduced totally unacceptable. Does he not agree that the Office of Public Works and his Department are responsible, through Dúchas, for the rivers within the city of Dublin and that, although they have dredged part of the Tolka stretching down towards the sea, they have not dredged the rest of it where the flooding has taken place? Will the Minister of State not begin immediately the dredging of the Tolka? There are trees, sand banks and mud banks in the Tolka which have been there for ages.
We had a serious enough flood two years ago in exactly this month, almost to the day. Therefore, given the present climate, it is to be expected that we will have another flood within a year or two. Meteorologists say in today's papers that the one predictable thing is the weather and when flooding will take place. Therefore, it is not an act of God and humans can intervene. The Minister of State is telling us that, despite the fact that people's homes have been flooded to this degree, his Department will not intervene. Can he not assure us and the people who have suffered that the Tolka will be dredged and that the weirs, dams and bridges, some of which are low-lying and makeshift and lower than they were originally conceived to be, will be dealt with immediately, and that the walls along the Tolka will be rebuilt and raised higher where there is a potential danger of flooding?
We want answers to these questions. We are waiting for a promised report which was initiated two years ago when the flooding took place and which is now due in another year. We do not know when it will be published, and it will cost millions of euro to carry out its recommendations. In the meantime, tens of millions of euro could be lost and there could be further human suffering. Could we have some reassurance from the Minister of State that some action will be taken?
I am sure work is taking place as we speak to rebuild the walls that existed to contain the flood and to rectify the damage that has been done.
Only where there are houses falling into the river.
To make matters very clear, Dublin City Council is responsible for keeping the river clean. Because of the history of flooding along the Tolka, we funded and instigated the study that is being carried out. The indications from the Office of Public Works at this stage are that interim measures, as suggested by Deputies Costello and Gregory, are not viable in terms of the overall—
Of course they are.
That is what the Minister of State is being told.
I am sure, because of what has happened—
What is not viable?
Order, please. Other Deputies want to ask questions.
The river, which is very extensive, goes all the way from County Meath to Dublin Bay. There are difficulties at each stage of it. The overall cost of the scheme could run to over €100 million. We know from Office of Public Works experience that even before one puts a digger near a river, because of environmental impact and archaeological studies, it is guaranteed that there will be delays and other interest groups with something major to say. That is not to say that Dublin City Council, in conjunction with the Office of Public Works, is not working on the river as we speak. If the black spots which Deputy Gregory says are so obvious are apparent, I am sure they will be dealt with.
The Minister of State in his reply spoke of compensation being available for damage to homes, but then said it does not apply to compensation for losses. Does that mean that people will not get any compensation for damage to their furniture, equipment or cars? Some streets resemble the Somme at the moment in terms of the damage that has been inflicted.
What will be covered by the scheme? Will the Minister of State agree immediately to fund, at a cost of €1.5 million, the early warning scheme? Dublin City Council has an application lying with the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources in this regard and it would at least allow a proper early warning scheme to be put in place. This is the third occurrence of flooding within 12 months that has affected some part of Dublin. We need the early warning scheme and I ask for a clear commitment in that regard.
Will the Minister of State say today that the Office of Public Works is taking responsibility for flood relief in Dublin city and that he will not expect Dublin City Council, which is not an expert in this field and does not cover the entire catchment of the river, to bear responsibility? Is the Minister of State accepting an Office of Public Works-sponsored flood relief scheme which will be properly funded?
As other Deputies have asked, is the Minister of State agreeing to certain amounts of repair? Surely, the removal of silt that has been brought down by this flood constitutes a form of repair. There should be a minimum level of dredging just to restore the situation to the position ex ante. That, at the very minimum, must be provided for by the Minister of State. Can we be clear that the Office of Public Works will not be found wanting financially in respect of the works that Dublin City Council identifies as necessary so those of us who, thanks to the dual mandate, are able to represent people in both chambers can be satisfied that action will be taken when problems are diagnosed?
The last payout we had was in Dublin city, East Wall and Ringsend. A sum of €8.5 million was paid out through the Red Cross. There were 725 claims and the average payment was €10,377. Payment was made to households that suffered damage to cover the cost of replacing carpeting and furniture. The compensation did not cover businesses that had to close or employees who could not travel to work.
The Red Cross has much experience in this area. I recently received from the chairman its report on the last incident and I understand there were scarcely any complaints. It is the intention to re-engage the Red Cross and I am sure that even in advance of the closing date for submission of application forms its officials will visit houses to see what needs to be done. The Government intends to do whatever is required.
Dublin City Council is responsible for the maintenance of the River Tolka.
The river water comes from County Meath and elsewhere.
The Office of Public Works decided to fund the strategic survey on the drainage requirements of Dublin city, which will indicate what work needs to be done.
A study is only as good as the work done.
The Office of Public Works will not be found wanting in implementing the report's recommendations, regardless of whether the work involved will include dredging, building walls or moving bridges. The Estimate for flood relief has doubled from €10 million to €20 million. We will seek to operate within those resources.
This is the wettest year on record. While there is much talk of the impact of global warming and there has been an increase in the number of damaging incidents caused by the weather, this trend may not continue. When the report is completed it will be our responsibility to ensure that the necessary funding is available to implement the recommendations.
The early warning question is not within the Minister of State's remit but perhaps he could arrange to forward a reply to me.
I wish to give way to my colleague, Deputy English, as the area he represents was devastated by the floods.
The Minister of State indicated that the average payment made to the victims of last year's floods was approximately €10,000. In most of the houses I visited the cost of the damage will amount to between €40,000 and €50,000. Many of them are without insurance cover. In view of this I hope the funding to the Red Cross will not be limited as it will take considerably more than €8 million to repair the damage done on this occasion.
The consultant's report will not be ready until next May. However, the issues involved do not require the application of rocket science. Given his farming background, the Minister of State will appreciate that a JCB could solve many of the problems. It does not require consultants to be told that the rivers at risk require to be dredged, including the River Tolka and the river going through my local area. That work could be started immediately because similar flooding could occur at any time between now and next May.
Many short-term measures can be taken. Will the Minister of State indicate if money will be provided to the local authorities which propose solutions? For example, my local authority, Meath County Council, proposed to bank an area in Clonee but that work was unable to proceed because of a lack of money. The council is already overdrawn by €6.5 million.
Many of the households affected by the recent flooding have insurance whereas the majority of houses affected by the flooding in the East Wall last year did not. The question of insurance will not disqualify households from receipt of Red Cross aid, although it will be taken into account.
I wish it was a simple matter of using a couple of JCBs for remedial work. An extreme situation occurred last weekend. We must consider all recommendations for reducing the risk of further flooding and I will put the suggestions made by Deputies to the consultants. They have indicated that some proposed interim measures are not viable, but we will consider them further and see if at least some of them can be implemented.
I wish to express my solidarity with the residents who suffered the trauma of the floods and I also appreciate the great work done by the rescue workers. Does the Minister of State agree it is extraordinary that one episode of rainfall, albeit of unusual intensity, should bring the capital city to a standstill, with thousands of workers virtually trapped in their workplace, on public transport or in their cars as they took between three and seven hours to get home? Does he agree that it is indicative of a badly neglected infrastructure and the failure to accept that it must be modified to cope with the reality of climate change?
Does the Minister of State agree that it is grossly irresponsible for local authorities and developers to build thousands of homes on the flood plains of the River Tolka when it is clear that the surface water from such developments will create huge problems? Will he give a commitment to include in the strategic study the proposed developments of 2,300 units of accommodation at the Phoenix Park racecourse and approximately 4,000 units at Kelletstown on the flood plain of the River Tolka? Does he agree that there must be an urgent review of the plans for these developments to ensure the disaster suffered by householders last week will not be repeated?
Will the Minister of State clarify the position regarding the Red Cross assisted humanitarian aid scheme? In one area flooding occurred to residents who had been in their new affordable homes for eight or ten weeks, homes they had to struggle to acquire. Unfortunately, as a result many did not have contents insurance and suffered heartbreak when the flooding ruined their new furniture, perhaps given to them as presents by their relatives. Will the Minister of State give an undertaking that the restoration of such furniture and equipment will be covered by the scheme and will be done expeditiously, before Christmas because of the extra hardship that will otherwise be involved?
Extreme weather this year has caused destruction not only in Ireland but across the Continent, from Germany, through eastern Europe and even on the Costa del Sol. It is difficult to legislate for what has happened, which has caught the authorities across Europe by surprise. That is not to say that we should not be watchful for the future.
The substantial developments along the River Tolka valley will be considered in the strategic study. New developments will be looked at in light of that, but there may be a slightly larger question mark over their viability in terms of where they are situated. The Deputy spoke of the height of irresponsibility, but the height of common sense would be to act in light of the fallout we have seen. The Office of Public Works and the city council have measured the flood levels very carefully and they have reached a height that we have never seen before. What we have seen is extreme and that establishes a new basis and standard for future developments.
In terms of clarity, the Red Cross scheme administered before was set up to deal with losses, but it does not provide total compensation. It provides for the loss of furniture and the cost of being out of one's home. People from the East Wall had to find accommodation in bed and breakfast establishments for substantial periods of time. I have the greatest confidence in the Red Cross, given its experience, to deal fairly with these circumstances. I merely gave the example of the fallout in terms of the average losses, which is not to suggest there will be a limit above or below that this time. The matter will be entirely in the hands of the Red Cross who will deal with this independently. It will be up to the Office of Public Works to find, within the constraints of the current budget, the money to cover those losses.
Before calling for the next supplementary question, I point out to the House that it was voluntarily agreed on all sides that these questions would conclude after 30 minutes. There are very important matters to be discussed in the remaining time. These questions have now gone on for 34 minutes and I appeal to Members to be extremely brief to be fair to those who wish to contribute to the major debate which is to follow this business. We may be depriving Members of the opportunity to contribute by reason of lateness.
Is the Office of Public Works responsible for anti-flood measures regarding rivers? That is fairly straightforward. The Minister of State said that the city council was responsible for cleaning rivers. If the Office of Public Works is responsible for anti-flood measures, will it ensure that funding is made available to implement whatever measures its engineers and those of Dublin Corporation decide are necessary? It does not matter if that work is done by the Office of Public Works or the council, but it must be done now. Dredging the city section of the Tolka must be included in those works and it will not have any negative impact elsewhere. If anything, the effect will be positive everywhere. Will the Minister of State arrange a meeting between the consultants concerned, the city council and local representatives to deal with these issues with the urgency required? The weather system is clearly changing, this has happened twice in two years at these locations and it could happen again this winter.
It is disturbing that the Minister of State did not indicate that interim measures were to be introduced. I thought Waterways Ireland was responsible for the waterways in the city and that the local authority was responsible for dealing with cleaning. We need to get a further commitment because this is November and it is very likely we will have another flood within the month. We may also have one in November 2003 and we must put the necessary interim measures in place immediately, which is not to talk of an overall plan. Where it is determined that methods can be introduced quickly can we have a commitment that they will be? Can the Minister of State provide the House with a straight answer regarding the fund that has been brought forward under the aegis of the Red Cross? Is it going to be disbursed under the same terms of reference as the East Wall fund?
Is the Minister of State aware that where people do not have a mortgage and are not in the habit of repaying a mortgage protection policy and insurance cover? That needs to be taken into account in any calculation and assistance given to those who have been flooded. Given that the city council has flagged the inadequacy of the drainage system due to the building of the city outwards not upwards as well as the significance of climate change, does the Minister of State agree it is time to introduce a flooding plan on a county by county basis? Such plans would provide for known flash points like the Poddle River in Kimmage where the sluice gate is regularly blocked by debris swept down the river leading to flooding of the road and of homes. Known flash points should be identified as part of a county plan so that when rainfall of the sort we have seen takes place, someone will be charged with the responsibility of going to unblock that debris before flooding occurs. That could help to solve the problem. We have a national accident emergency plan which is on a county by county footing. Why do we not have a flooding plan, particularly if this sort of thing can be predicted to happen again?
Will the Minister of State intervene with the Red Cross to ensure that extra resources are put into the assessment of damage and that an interim payment is made before Christmas?
Will the Minister of State look at the parliamentary questions that we on this side of the House put down over the past five to seven years regarding precisely the same locations that have been affected again and again? Will he address the issues which have been raised in those questions? It is clear to all lay persons that there is an urgent need to carry out remedial works and I refer to my own constituency which is a case in point. At the same locations in Leixlip, Celbridge, Maynooth, Straffan and Johnstown we have had the same problems over and over. In cases where people have been refused insurance as a result of repeated flooding over the years, will the Minister of State use his influence with the relevant authorities, the Red Cross or others, to ensure they are compensated?
The Minister of State indicated that on completion of its report the Office of Public Works would not be found wanting. Is he aware that his predecessor said exactly the same thing with respect to Arklow last year? That report has now been published and funding has been sought for an early warning system and remedial works, but none is forthcoming. People in the Tolka basin and in Arklow have as much chance of holding back the tide as they have of getting funding from this Government.
I pay tribute to the voluntary groups who came to the rescue in Willow Park, Athlone.
These questions refer to Meath and Dublin and cannot be expanded to include other areas.
This is a flood area.
The questions refer to Dublin and Meath.
Athlone was mentioned in the Minister's reply.
I realise that, but the questions are about Dublin and Meath.
Will the Minister of State confirm that those from the Willow Park area who make applications through the Red Cross will receive payments for damage to their property? Will he tell us what progress has been made in relation to a permanent solution to the problem of the River Al in Athlone? Has money been provided for in the Estimates to effect a permanent solution?
Will the students be compensated?
Can we take it that the humanitarian aid procedure administered through the Red Cross will be applied to residents and students in the Willow Park and Alverno Drive areas of Athlone who suffered severe losses, displacement, inconvenience and stress? Second, will he ensure that €4.5 million is provided to fund the long-term solution to the problem of flooding caused by the River Al, as proposed by P.H. McCarthy & Partners, consultants, and to deal with all the problems associated with the River Al in the Willow Park estate area?
The Office of Public Works only has responsibility for arterial drainage schemes which it instigates. Otherwise, all rivers are the responsibility of the local authority, be it Dublin City Council in this case, Fingal or Meath County Council. Prior to this flooding, the Office of Public Works had no responsibility for the maintenance, deepening or otherwise of that particular river but because of our experience we knew that a flooding threat existed. We offered our expertise and €870,000 to fund the study, and we take our responsibilities seriously in that regard.
There is much confusion in the House about responsibility for anti-flood measures. Waterways Ireland has responsibility for the canals, North and South; it has nothing to do with rivers. Responsibility for this area lies with the local authorities and currently we do not even have the legal power to have any involvement in the River Tolka. We are there at the behest of Dublin City Council. It is not our responsibility, therefore, but the new work that has to be done will become the responsibility of the Office of Public Works.
In terms of the Office of Public Works's work in hand, whether it be the various stages of flood relief measures, from early feasibility studies to works on site, we are talking of a cost of €300 million. Major flood relief schemes are currently under way in Kilkenny city and Carrick-on-Suir and a number of other schemes, including Arklow, have either gone through the planning process or are at some other stage. A total of €300 million is being spent on those works which are ongoing as resources become available.
I confirm for the benefit of the two Deputies from the Athlone area that Athlone will be included in the humanitarian aid. We had a meeting here one night at 9 p.m. with the Office of Public Works, the Deputies and representatives of Westmeath County Council. A further meeting took place yesterday and there will be ongoing meetings. Clearly much work has to be done in that regard because the very first communication we received from Westmeath County Council about the floods in Athlone was the day after the floods, so we cannot be too far ahead of the posse. The question of who will fund that particular measure, whether it be the county council or the Office of Public Works, will come up for further debate.
I confirm again that the Red Cross scheme does not provide compensation for losses. It provides for assistance where extreme hardship is being suffered. The closing date is 6 December. The eligibility criteria are extreme hardship, homelessness, damage to homes and serious injury. All of the concerns raised by the Deputy will be included in the criteria and in the calculation of loss.
Will the Minister of State try to provide an interim payment before Christmas?
The fact that Christmas is around the corner adds to the poignancy and the pressure on people. The closing date is 6 December and I hope the Red Cross will have some of its work done before then. Obviously the people concerned have to first deal with their insurance companies, which I understand are on the ground taking care of losses. There will not be a lack of finance. The moneys will be made available to the Red Cross and, though it is a short time between 6 December and Christmas, we will strive in every way possible to have those funds made available by Christmas.