Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 28 Nov 2023

Vol. 1046 No. 4

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate

School Enrolments

Deputy Jennifer Whitmore

I thank the Minister of State for attending and representing the Minister for Education.

In early October, the three principals in the town of Greystones in Wicklow came together in an unprecedented fashion to issue a press release telling parents that there was a high likelihood that, between the three schools, sufficient places would not be provided for pupils from local primary schools who would be first year students in 2024. They stated that there were significant pressures on the infrastructure and accommodation within their schools and that 72 fewer secondary school places would be offered in September 2024 than were offered the previous year.

Obviously, this caused considerable concern.

I had an opportunity to raise it with the planning section of the Department of Education on 3 October to highlight to it that this was coming down the road and to determine whether it could deal with it proactively so parents would not have to deal with the concerns and worry that no places would be available for their children. I raised it again on 12 October by way of another Topical Issue because this is a serious concern for the area. I raised it again on 7 November through parliamentary questions, and I am raising it again tonight. The reason I am raising it is because this is an incredibly serious issue for parents, students and the schools in Greystones. Having 70 fewer places available for the intake next September, when the number of primary school children coming out of sixth class will be higher, will cause significant problems.

On 10 November this year, the schools made their first-round offers to parents. My understanding is that, at that stage, the waiting lists for the three schools had 200 to 250 pupils. Many parents came to me at that point, really worried about what was going to happen. There is a duplication in the waiting lists but the reality is that 70, 80 or perhaps 90 children in Greystones will not have a place.

Let me outline the level at which the Department needs to be thinking about this. The stress put on children making the transition from primary school to secondary school, because they do not know whether they will be in with their friends, the uniforms they will be wearing, the schoolbooks they will need to get or the school they will be going to, is enormous. This pressure is also on the parents. They are incredibly upset.

I have raised this at every single opportunity. I am doing so because I want the Department to work proactively to alleviate the stress on parents. I am aware that the second-round offers will be going out either at the end of this week or early next week. At that stage, we will have a much clearer picture of the exact number of children who do not have a place. I am very fearful about the number of parents who will be coming to me next week having been told their children do not have a place.

Since I have raised this repeatedly, I want to know whether the children will get places, where they will get them, how the Department envisages them being given, and when parents will be told their children will get the places. This is an incredibly serious issue for parents, students and schools in Greystones.

Minister of State at the Department of Education (Deputy Thomas Byrne)

Ba mhaith liom mo bhuíochas a ghabháil leis an Teachta as an t-ábhar seo a ardú. It gives me the opportunity to set out for the House the position on post-primary school places in Greystones in September of next year. I assure the Deputy that the provision of school places to meet the needs of children and young people at primary and post-primary levels, including children and young people with special educational needs, is an absolute priority for the Department.

As the Deputy may be aware, for school planning purposes the Department of Education divides the country into 314 school planning areas and uses a GIS system to anticipate demand. Information from a range of sources, including child benefit and school enrolment data, and information on residential development activity is used for this purpose. Additionally, Project Ireland 2040 population and housing targets inform the Department's projections of school place requirements.

Having considered the projected requirements in each school planning area, the Department then assesses existing capacity within each area and its ability to meet any increased demand. Additional provision is made, as necessary, where existing capacity is insufficient for future needs.

The Department is aware that pressures at post-primary level in Greystones are in part due to the reduction by some schools of the number of first-year places being made available for 2024-25. A critical next step is to acquire clarity on the actual number of additional first-year places required for 2024 in order for an appropriate solution to be put in place. In that context, schools in several areas of enrolment pressure, including Greystones, have been requested to share data on applications for admissions. The Department is liaising closely with schools to ensure this data is provided as soon as possible, and once it is received the actual requirement for places can be established. The Deputy referred to this. The Department is already discussing potential solutions with the relevant school patrons and authorities, but understanding the actual school place needs will clarify the specific actions required. This close engagement with schools and patrons will also allow the Department to identify further capacity requirements for the forthcoming years and put any required solutions beyond those already in train to ensure sufficient school places.

In line with the Department's demographic projections of post-primary school place requirements, there has been continued growth in enrolments in Greystones. In response to the projections of school place needs in Greystones, the Department is providing significant additional post-primary capacity, including a new 1,000-pupil school building for Greystones Community College. Greystones Community College was established in 2020 as a regional solution for the Kilcoole and Greystones area. The project to deliver this new school building is at stage 3, tender stage.

In addition to delivering that project, the Department has recently delivered a major building project to expand St. David's secondary school and is also progressing a building project for Temple Carrig School. St. David's is a coeducational school, and a major building project to deliver state-of-the art, modern school accommodation for 750 pupils was provided.

Temple Carrig secondary school is a coeducational school and it was established in 2014. There is a project under way to provide accommodation at this school for 1,000 pupils, which is currently at stage 1. A project for four modular classrooms has also been approved. These classrooms are now on site and the project is nearing completion.

In addition, there is the existing school in the adjacent Kilcoole school planning area, Coláiste Chraobh Abhann, for which a major project is approved to expand it to 1,000 pupils. This project is currently at stage 2B and is being delivered by the NDFA.

I assure Deputy Whitmore that Department officials will continue to engage actively with schools and patrons to ensure appropriate provision for all students in Greystones for the 2024-25 school year and into the future. Families can be assured that any necessary solution will be delivered so all the children in the Greystones area will receive a first-year place. That is a guarantee.

Deputy Jennifer Whitmore

I thank the Minister of State. Parents will be very relieved to hear the guarantee that there will be a school place for each of the children. We now need this to happen quickly so parents will know a solution will be put in place quickly if they receive refusals at the end of this week or early next week. In Greystones, and indeed in the north Wicklow area, these solutions have taken an awfully long time. It can be the following May or July before parents actually know what school their children will be going to. That is not fair to the children and parents, or indeed to the schools. I ask that the solutions be outlined and that parents be given clarity on when this will happen. I ask that the Department and Minister engage with me and other public representatives in the area to ensure we are kept abreast of developments, in addition to the schools.

The Minister of State said the pressures are in part due to some schools reducing their number of places. This is the case but it is completely beyond the responsibility of the schools. They simply do not have the infrastructure, classrooms and ability to accommodate the children, and they have worked really hard to ensure parents are supported in respect of the decision and that local representatives are kept informed so they could bring a problem to the attention of the Minister.

There are several school projects that seem to be going far too slowly. In October, I was told the full build for Greystones Community College, the 1,000-student unit, would done for quarter 2 of 2025. The latest update from the Department, on 17 November, indicates it will be early 2026. If that is the case, we will be back here again next year and parents will be coming to us again with no school places. Therefore, we need to see the school projects for both Greystones Community College and Temple Carrig School expedited so places can be provided for the following year.

Deputy Thomas Byrne

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue and doing her job as a constituency TD, as I did myself in the Opposition benches and continue to do as a Minister of State in respect of similar scenarios. Her raising of the issue is a chance to outline the position of the Department. The Minister and Department are correct that there is a strong pipeline of project delivery for schools in the area, and these projects are delivering capacity. The Department has been in contact with schools and patrons and is aware of the situation. I thank Deputy Whitmore, the Minister for Health, Deputy Donnelly, the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Deputy Harris, and others in the constituency. The Minister is aware of the evolving situation for September 2024. The critical next step is the prompt provision by the schools of clear data on applications for admission, and engagement with the schools and patrons is ongoing in that respect. The information is critical. Officials will continue to liaise with each school patron to find a workable solution to ensure no student will be without a place in September 2024.

The priority for the Department is to ensure that there are places available for every student for the next school year and every school year. The Department will continue to engage with patrons and school authorities in this regard. I expect further clarity will be provided to families and school communities in the coming weeks.

Disease Management

Deputy Colm Burke

I thank the Minister of State for taking this matter. I know that health is not his area but I appreciate his taking this so late in the evening. All of those involved in the whole area of rare diseases, both families and those involved in developing new drugs, are concerned at worsening trends which suggest that rare disease patients in Ireland are being subjected to even longer waiting times before acquiring access to life-changing and life-saving orphan medicines in comparison with previous years. The latest EFPIA indicator survey for 2022 suggests that Irish patients are now waiting on average 877 days between approval from the European Medicines Agency and access to a new orphan medicinal product for rare diseases. This puts Ireland 31st out of 37 countries in Europe.

Ireland needs a system of reimbursement that is clear, predictable and time bound with fixed assessment criteria and one that also includes mechanisms that enable immediate early access to rare disease therapies. In 2018 the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health published a report evaluating orphan drugs which called for a comprehensive review of the reimbursement evaluation process specifically for orphan medical products. Mazars was appointed by the Department of Health to conduct the report on rare diseases which was eventually published on 28 February 2023. Unfortunately, the report only examined the general reimbursement process as a whole and failed to consider the rare disease perspective as originally sought by the health committee. I was on that health committee in 2018 when we set out what needed to be implemented to make sure that these orphan drugs would be made available at an early date.

The Mazars report provides 17 recommendations which, while welcome, do not go far enough to address the issue of timely patient access to life-changing treatments and are too general in nature. Crucially, none of the recommendations involved a change in legislation. Despite the report producing that number of recommendations, very little changed.

I referred to the average waiting time in Ireland between approval by the European Medicines Agency for a drug and that orphan drug becoming available in Ireland as being 877 days. In Germany it is 45 days and in Austria it is 104 days. Therefore, we are way behind. This issue has been going on for over five years. I know the Minister has set up the process. We had the National Rare Disease Plan 2014 to 2018. That has been out of date for five years. I know the Minister is talking about a new national plan. However, when will that be delivered? When with the recommendations that already exist be put in place to deal with this whole issue of rare diseases?

Many people affected cannot get access to medication that is available in other European countries because it has been approved by the European Medicines Agency. This area should now be given priority.

Deputy Thomas Byrne

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta as an t-ábhar seo a ardú anocht. I think all of us fully appreciate how devastating a diagnosis of a rare disease can be for patients, families, and carers. I believe that there is cross-party support for doing everything we can to help patients who live with these conditions on a daily basis.

In February, on Rare Diseases Day, the Minister for Health announced a plan to develop a revised national rare disease plan, in line with the commitment in the programme for Government. Initial work for the new plan has commenced and a steering group to progress the new plan is being convened next week to begin to develop a successor to the previous national rare disease plan. The development of a successor plan will allow the steering group to consider areas of the previous plan that need to be further progressed, while also looking to the future needs of those patients and families living with a rare disease diagnosis.

An update on the current state of each of the 48 recommendations in the National Rare Diseases Plan 2014-2018 has been completed by the Department of Health. While a number of areas for improvement remain, various actions have been implemented from the 2014-2018 plan and significant resources invested in this area in recent years. Principal among those actions was the establishment of the national rare disease office, NRDO. The NRDO is the national rare disease co-ordination hub and the HSE's main contact and driver of rare disease initiatives and projects. The NRDO is committed to informing, supporting and empowering people affected by rare conditions, their families, caregivers and healthcare professionals.

The HSE national clinical programme for rare diseases published the HSE Model of Care for Transition from Paediatric to Adult Healthcare Providers in Rare Diseases in 2018 and the Model of Care for Rare Diseases in 2019. The work of the national clinical programme for rare diseases has now been mainstreamed into standard operations under the NRDO.

Furthermore, last year, the HSE was nominated as the national competent authority in an EU Joint Action of European Reference Networks for Rare Diseases, which enables greater co-ordination and sharing of best practices in key areas such as genetic testing. As a result of this collaboration, Ireland is now a member of 18 European reference networks, ERNs, on rare diseases. These ERNs include representation from five academic hospitals and three universities and are co-ordinated by the national rare disease office.

In terms of medicines for rare diseases, the Minister for Health during his term of office has significantly increased the level of funding available for new innovative medicines, including medicines for rare diseases - a combined €100 million in the last three budgets. More than 100 new medicines have been approved including 39 for orphan medicines that are used to treat rare diseases. The medicines have provided new treatments for rare diseases, including cystic fibrosis, multiple sclerosis, spinal muscular atrophy, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and Leber’s hereditary optic neuropathy.

While the new national rare diseases plan is expected to be launched by quarter 3 of 2024, it will be dependent on the work of the steering group in the development of the plan.

Deputy Colm Burke

I thank the Minister of State. I fully appreciate the funding that has been made available. However, we need to remember the figure I gave at the start. I know very many new orphan drugs have been made available over the past two or three years. We need to remember that we are still talking about the average number of days from approval by the European Medicines Agency to being available here is 877 days. The Alliance of Rare Disease Companies and also the people who have a family member with a rare disease are looking for the appointment of a designated rare diseases liaison person within Department of Health, which is one of the recommendations. That is extremely important because everybody is dealing with a different person within the Department of Health. There is no one person they can talk to about it. That is one of the issues that is now being looked for.

The old national rare disease plan has now expired for over five years. There were 48 recommendations in that plan which were never implemented. The plan has already existed for five years. Many of the proposals in the 2014-18 plan were never implemented and would not require change of legislation to implement. I am asking that those recommendations would be looked at to see how they could be put in place.

The 2018 Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health report was quite specific on the avenue that the Department could go down to try to expedite the process for people with a rare disease. We need to remember that for somebody with a rare disease time is of the essence. If they cannot get access to medication, it will not help them get the appropriate treatment. We now need to go forward, look at the old plan and see what can be put in place without having to wait for the new plan but also progressing the new plan and putting in set timescales for the implementation of the terms of that new plan.

Deputy Thomas Byrne

I thank the Deputy for providing the opportunity to discuss this matter and I acknowledge his work in the area. Many rare conditions are complex and the impact for patients living with them can be severe.

At times, it can be difficult to access appropriate medications and technology. The development of a successor to the previous national rare diseases plan is a key priority for the Department to ensure that there is a plan in place to drive improvements for rare disease patients and their families. As part of the development of the plan, a patient form will be established to ensure that voices of patients and families will be central to the development of policy. A steering group is being established to progress the development of the plan and will meet for the first time next week.

I once again thank the Deputy for raising this important issue and I assure him that the Government is fully committed to doing everything possible to help people living with a rare disease.

Deputy Colm Burke

Could I just ask the Minister of State about the issue I raised about a liaison person to be appointed? That would take out a lot of the uncertainty within the Department on that.

Bus Services

Deputy John Lahart

It is close to midnight, and I very much appreciate the Minister of State coming to the House to take this question of behalf of the Government. As the Minister of State will probably be aware from his own constituency, continuous changes as part of the BusConnects project and changes in bus schedules continue to be rolled out by the NTA. Some of them have rolled out in my constituency. I was alerted to the potential impact of some of these changes recently, notwithstanding the public consultation that took place a long time ago. We will come back to that in part two of my contribution.

For the first time, I carried out an online petition to assess the impact and the public response. I expected approximately 100 or 200 people to respond. Today, almost 3,500 people have signed that petition and today alone 180 people signed it. It has been 3,500 people in the last week.

Some of the comments I have received in emails and social media probably illustrate it better than any kind of long-winded contribution I could make. With the Minister of State’s indulgence, I will therefore cite a number of them. This is from a young student:

I am finding it really hard to get space on the new S6 bus both to and from school in Stillorgan from Nutgrove, Rathfarnham. It is full or just so packed in morning and afternoons. It is just horrible. I am thirteen and it is just claustrophobic. Please put on buses. We can see they are every ten minutes in the middle of the day and only two come between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. in the morning. I cannot get the S8 as many of them are cancelled. I signed John Lahart’s petition and I read many other people are annoyed too.

Here is another one:

I emailed you last week to thank you for your attempts to keep the 175 bus route. I am coming back to you today, day three, with an update on the replacement service. Yesterday evening, after his 7 p.m. lecture finished in UCD, it took my son one hour and 40 minutes to get home to Knocklyon. This was at non-peak times. This morning, he took the number 15 to the stop near a particular pub and waited over 40 minutes for the S6. While he waited, three S6 buses were cancelled. So much for the more frequent service. A lot of people walked away. Others waited. By the time the bus arrived it was so full there was standing room only.

Here is another one:

Can you please answer why at 6.55 a.m. and here I am checking buses and realising there will not be an option for my three kids to get in on time, so I now have to drop them in by car and then drive on to work in the city?

Here is another one from a young man named Eoin:

Here, just so you know I am after standing at the S6 bus stop for 40 minutes with three buses in a row not coming. Everyone here is furious.

Here is another one:

As was entirely predictable, there was chaos this morning. There were only three S6 buses between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. Entirely insufficient. Children were left standing at bus stops as the S6 went past full, as every parent in this area knew would be the case. At a time when we are being urged to use public transport, the public transport options for families in this area whose children who attend particular schools are being reduced.

Here is another one:

My children attempted to take the new S6 this morning at 7:40 a.m. at Nutgrove Rathfarnham in the direction of Blackrock. It was full. See image attached. Moreover, the S8 was full at 7.26 a.m. at Taylor’s Lane in the direction of the N11. Finally, the interconnecting buses numbers 14 and 16 were also messed up and some cancelled. It was a fairly stressful morning to say the least for our children and ourselves.

Here is another one:

I am sending you an e-mail regarding BusConnects. I live in Whitechurch in Rathfarnham. From Sunday, number 61 will be withdrawn, as will the number 175 and 75. These three buses are the buses that served our particular area.

Here is another one:

These buses also cover City West to UCD, but since the consultation, over 5,000 new residents to this area moved in in the past two years. 27 new apartment blocks on the way.

Here is another one:

My daughter will now have to use two buses to get to UCD and also extend her journey time significantly. The other route as well was to IADT in Dún Laoghaire.

That is the background and that is part one of what I want to say to the Minister of State.

Deputy Thomas Byrne

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta Lahart. Is ábhar an-tábhachtach é seo. I think you need more buses. There is no doubt about it. The Deputy has raised a lot of issues there and I will be happy to pass them to the Minister, Deputy Ryan, and the Minister of State, Deputy Chambers, and make it clear what Deputy’s constituents are saying.

The Minister for Transport has responsibility for policy and funding but neither the Minister nor his officials are involved in the day-to-day operation. As the Deputy knows, the statutory responsibility rests with the National Transport Authority, NTA. The NTA works with the operators which deliver the services and which have responsibility for day-to-day operational matters. That being said, the Government is strongly committed to providing all citizens with reliable and realistic sustainable transport options, and public transport has a key part to play in this. In budget 2023, the Department secured €563.55 million in funding for public service obligation, PSO, and Local Link services. This is a significant increase on last year.

More recently, under budget 2024, a funding package of approximately €611 million has been secured for PSO and Local Link services. This includes funding for the continuation of the 20% fare reduction on PSO services, the young adult card on both PSO and commercial bus services and the 90-minute fare until the end of 2024. Funding has also been secured to support new and enhanced bus and rail services next year.

The Government is committed to improving public transport - both bus and rail - and is backing up that up with significant investment. This includes BusConnects. The latest phase of the BusConnects network redesign in Dublin, phase 5b, started on 26 November and involves the introduction of new southern orbital, radial and local routes. The S2, 74 and L25 routes are operated by Dublin Bus and routes S4, S6, S8, W2 and L55 are operated by Go Ahead Ireland.

Phase 5b represents an increase in service levels of approximately 80%. It is one of the most significant changes under the network redesign to date. With the introduction of these new services, as of 26 November, routes 17, 17d, 18, 61, 75, 75a, 76, 76a and 175 ceased operations. I understand that information booklets are being delivered to households in the areas that are affected by the launch, and an extensive media and public relations campaign has started.

With respect to the Deputy’s specific queries, it should be noted that UCD should be served by routes S4 and S6, running every ten and 15 minutes, respectively. Other existing routes such as the 39a, 46a, 145 and 155 will continue to run. The S4 route should provide a direct connection via Clonskeagh to Milltown for the Luas and then to Rathgar and Terenure for connections with routes 14, 15, 15a, 15b and 16. These connections are either new or much more direct than the current route 17, which loops southward between UCD and Terenure. Route S4 then continues via Crumlin to Ballyfermot and Liffey Valley. Route S6 continues to provide the connection to Dundrum, but at a higher frequency than route 175, then onward via Rathfarnham to give new direct connections with Templeogue and Firhouse Road and on to Tallaght.

The Department, the NTA and the operators are working to ensure the best deployment of resources across the public transport network to match changing passenger demand patterns. I am conscious of what the Deputy and his constituents are saying. The Minister, Deputy Ryan, and the NTA need to know that. Clearly, they are having difficulty with the roll-out of this programme.

Deputy John Lahart

I thank the Minister of State. I would be very grateful if he could go back to the Minister, Deputy Ryan, to tell him this. I say this particularly in the light of one of the points the Minister of State made regarding what the Government has been doing with fares to encourage people to abandon their cars and use public transport. I refer particularly to young people. One of the comments I did not read out or complete was from a parent who said that we are coming into exam season for these students. They want a public transport system that they can rely on. I read through approximately two thirds of what had been said to me. I told the Minister of State about the petition, which I will pass on to the NTA.

One of the reasons I raised this Topical Issue, and as I said, I am grateful to the Minister of State being here, is because I raised this matter with the NTA, I wrote to the NTA and I have not heard back from the authority. That is my first point. The operator of these buses, as outlined by the NTA is Go Ahead Ireland. Some of the schedules the Minister of State raised are for buses that are due every ten minutes. Clearly, however, the evidence from commuters over the past few days is that has not happened. I am aware that there are pros and cons. I am supportive of many of the aspects of BusConnects. I was very involved in making significant changes in relation to it. The Dublin Commuter Coalition on one of the social media platforms accused me of wanting to scrap the 175 and the 75 replacements.

My petition was really clear, in that I wanted to save their connections on those routes to UCD and IADT specifically. I understand the need for changes, and also that connections are bringing good things. I know, for example, that much of my constituency lies between the red and green Luas lines, and for the first time there will be bus services connecting people from that gap to both of those green lines. That is to be very much welcomed. I know there are other people who have made some very positive comments about some of the aspects of the changes.

However, I am critical of the communications. The Minister knows the metro-style map that is being used. A lot of people find that map really challenging to read, and I think the NTA could look at providing some assistance to people and a bit of education around how to read those maps. They can be quite challenging and complex for people who are not used to them. I thank the Minister of State again for taking the topic.

Deputy Thomas Byrne

I want to assure the Deputy that the Minister recognises that connectivity is hugely important. The Deputy has agreed with me that there has been a lot of Government investment in public transport. That is the case, and I know that the Deputy and I were strong backers and supporters of that.

It is true that some areas are losing a direct connection but if the service is running as advertised, there should be more connections overall. There should be more direct services, a higher frequency and some brand new services too. Overall, service levels on orbital routes to and from UCD are set to increase significantly. Previously, there were approximately five services an hour on the 17 and 175. This should be doubled to ten with the S4 and the S6. It should be noted that some communities will now benefit from a direct connection to UCD for the first time, on the S4 along the Long Mile Road, the hospital at Crumlin, Ballyfermot, Cherry Orchard, Rathgar, Milltown, and on the S6, which includes parts of the Firhouse Road, Cherryfield and Templeogue. Areas which up to now had a direct connection to UCD but which will require an interchange will include CityWest, Ballyboden, Knocklyon and parts of Firhouse.

I thank Deputy Lahart for raising this issue. We have BusConnects in the Dunboyne area in my own constituency, and it has not been implemented yet in full but we did agree changes with the National Transport Authority. I know that Deputy Lahart did that as well in his own constituency. There is a problem at the moment with a lack of drivers and there are also other issues we are facing. There is an issue with buses not turning up. Constant pressure from the Deputy on behalf of his constituents is very welcome. We have to make sure that for all the investment we are putting in to public transport, which is massive and unprecedented, the end user and the public transport bus user must get the benefit of that. We are so supportive of that.

Water Supply

Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh

It is disgraceful that in 2023, the residents of Clare Island are still dealing with water outages for up to two weeks at a time. They are still unable to get any commitment from Uisce Éireann on when the necessary upgrades will happen. The most recent continuous outage lasted a full ten days, with some parts of the island affected by disruptions for 14 days. Water outages are a very serious matter for our islanders, who are dependent on fresh water supply for drinking and basic sanitation but also in the case of fire.

These water outages are not new to the Clare Island community either. Over the past two years, they have had to deal with five boil water notices, and most recently, one ending in mid-October. Apart from the lack of water, the island community is frustrated by the ongoing lack of engagement from Uisce Éireann. Ms Joanne Carroll, the community development co-ordinator, tells me that unless she contacts Uisce Éireann directly for information, the islanders do not receive any warnings or updates. Residents are advised to check with the Uisce Éireann website for updates but with the national broadband plan not expected to offer connections to some islanders until 2025, this is not an acceptable solution from the national authority for water services. Such a lack of engagement from our national water authority is simply not acceptable, particularly for vulnerable island communities.

I ask the Minister of State to ask the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien to engage directly with the Clare Island community to outline a firm plan of action with a reasonable deadline to ensure contingency supplies are in place while the work is ongoing. They asked for contingency water supplies to be kept on the island but this has not happened either. Uisce Éireann will not commit to a deadline for the upgrade works, only stating that these projects take anywhere from 18 to 24 months to complete. Too often, when questions are put to the Minister about water infrastructure services, he says that they have no responsibility, and that it is a matter for Uisce Éireann. It would not be tolerated in any other situation.

We see the same thing with other group water schemes across the county, and I have to raise the situation on Achill Island as well, and the Sáile group water scheme. Again, they are caught in the middle between Mayo County Council and Uisce Éireann, and nobody will take responsiblity with regard to the works that need to be done there. They talk about the circular WSP01/16 as justification for requiring sureties when dealing with water schemes. The whole situation is a mess and I have raised this several times with the Taoiseach and the Minister. Somebody needs to take a grip of what is happening here, whether it is on Clare Island or Achill Island. Sáile group water scheme, Uisce Éireann says, does not comply with Uisce Éireann's basic standard documentation. It is hiding behind these circulars, including the WSP01/16, to not have action on it. Yet we have these communities, and there are several more of them in Mayo that I am not going to mention tonight because I have mentioned them several times before, that are caught in this situation where there is an inherited debt.

We have to remember that all of these people in group water schemes are volunteers. They are left without water in this day and age in 2023, and when we are in a situation where the country has a surplus of €8 billion, it is absolutely impossible for people in these communities to accept what is happening here, where they do not have basic water supply. It is not good enough.

Deputy Thomas Byrne

The Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien sends apologies and has asked me to attend this evening in his place to address this important issue in County Mayo. I thank Deputy Conway-Walsh for raising this issue and for allowing me the opportunity to outline the position regarding public water in Clare Island, and group water schemes in Mayo.

As the Deputy will understand, the supply of public water and the provision of water services in general are matters for Uisce Éireann in the first instance. However, the Department has made inquiries with Uisce Éireann on the issues mentioned, and we are informed as follows. A boil water notice on the Clare Island water supply was lifted on 5 October and normal use of the water supply could resume. The notice, which was issued in June, was put in place to protect the health of customers on the island following the detection of cryptosporidium in the water supply. Drinking water experts from Uisce Éireann worked to lift the notice as quickly and safely as possible, and following satisfactory water samples over 18 weeks the boil water notice was lifted. Meanwhile, works are progressing to upgrade the island’s water treatment plant.

There was also a recent disruption in water supply to the island, which lasted for a couple of days. Uisce Éireann has subsequently become aware that the disruption to individual premises lasted for longer, up to ten days for some. This can occur after a return of supply to a network where there may be issues with individual connections. I am informed that Uisce Éireann sincerely regrets the impact this had on these customers. Certain parts of the island can be affected intermittently with water outages due to a lack of storage to supply parts of the island.

With regard to the proposed water treatment plant upgrade, as part of Uisce Éireann’s commitment to ensuring all customers have no disruption to their water supply, a number of projects are being finalised for Clare Island. Group water schemes are community-owned and community-run enterprises. Local authorities, including Mayo County Council, are responsible for the day-to-day operation of the rural water programme while the Minister is responsible for policy. Significant capital and operational financial support is being provided to schemes under the rural water programme. The Department understands that Mayo County Council is not aware of any group water schemes with supply disruption issues in recent weeks.

Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh

There is a real problem here, and we need to take a grip of it, first with regard to Uisce Éireann and the local authorities. I do not think that people would accept it, nor would the Minister, if there was an area here in Dublin without water and having water outages as often as these communities do, particularly the one we are talking about here tonight, Clare Island, and also with regard to Sáile and what needs to be done. There is a disconnect somewhere where the Government will say that there is sufficient funding allocated yet the group water schemes are left in this situation.

If one were to say to local communities here in Dublin that it is up to themselves to supply their own water, they would not accept that either. The group water schemes seem to be the ones that are left like the poor relation. They have to be sorted out. Once they are sorted out, they will be sorted out. One sees where the authorities say that the pipes are not wide enough in Sáile in Achill for them to be taken over. It is just not good enough for people to be passed from Billy to Jack and back and over, and things not to be sorted out.

The people in Clare Island want to know when will those works be started and when will they be completed, not that they are in the pipeline or that they will be done at some time in the future. People need certainty about a water supply. They need a guaranteed water supply. People cannot live without a water supply. Without a water supply, they cannot live in Dublin and they cannot live in Clare Ireland, Achill Island or all of the other communities in Mayo as well.

I am asking if the Minister would meet Irish Water and tell its representative that the group water schemes are just as important as any other water scheme or water supply in the rest of the country, and we cannot be left behind all of the time, which is what is happening at present.

Deputy Thomas Byrne

I thank Deputy Conway-Walsh for raising the question. Indeed, we have our own water supply issues in my constituency where there are areas left for significant periods without water but, thanks to the investment the Government is putting into my constituency and, indeed, to the Deputy's constituency at Clare Island, I believe these problems are being ironed out and solved.

A number of projects are being finalised for Clare Island. One is a package ultraviolet unit. As there is no crypto barrier and crypto has been detected, it is proposed to add this treatment.

On granular activated carbon cartridges, the existing GAC layer is not fit for purpose. It is proposed to install six cartridges post slow sand filters-filtrations, with six on site for quick change out and a further six on stand-by for replenishing at the supplier depot. This will allow for quick change out of filters that can be done by hand, and constant GAC availability ensuring the integrity of the treatment process.

On investigation into possible new sources, investigations are under way to assess the potential to abstract water from a spring source further up the mountain. If these investigations identify a feasible new supply, it would also require the installation of an overground pipe of 300 m to 400 m to the new source for use in times when raw water quality deteriorates.

For the group water schemes, the Department’s multi-annual rural water programme, using Exchequer funding, is delivering improvements to water services, including in group water schemes, in areas of rural Ireland without public water services. The objective of the multi-annual programme, through its various funding measures, is to improve the quality, reliability and efficiency of water services for rural dwellers where Uisce Éireann services are not available. In addition, the Department's annual subsidy provides funding to contribute to the operational cost of schemes supplying water to their consumers for household use.

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue.

Cuireadh an Dáil ar athló ar 12.13 a.m. go dtí 9.10 a.m., Dé Céadaoin, an 29 Samhain 2023.

The Dáil adjourned at 12.13 a.m. until 9.10 a.m. on Wednesday, 29 November 2023.