It is with great pleasure that I commend this Bill to the House and I am particularly pleased that it has fallen to me to introduce this Bill and to introduce it in the Upper House. The transfer of the Grand Canal and the Royal Canal to the Commissioners of Public Works equates the canals as a public amenity, with the national parks, the Shannon Navigation and other major heritage items already under their expert care. At the same time, the transfer will relieve Córas Iompair Éireann of a burden totally unrelated to their essential function as public transport provider nationwide. The transfer of the canals is thus a further important step in the fundamental reorganisation of Córas Iompair Éireann proposed in the national plan. It is for those reasons that the Government wish to have the canals transferred quickly after enactment of this Bill.
The two canals involve more than 250 miles of waterways and have been in existence for about 200 years, much of the time as vital transport arteries. The canals have significantly benefited wide areas of the country, less obviously in recent decades, perhaps, with the ending of commercial traffic and some deterioration of facilities.
The intention now is that the canals should continue to contribute to the wellbeing and development of the community, but in new ways as a public amenity, whether for fishing or navigation or otherwise for the enjoyment of the public. This Bill is designed to give the canals this new role and to enable the Commissioners of Public Works to do what is needed to attain these objectives.
It is gratifying that there is general public welcome for the transfer of the canals to the Commissioners of Public Works. The Grand Canal is the older of the two, having been begun in 1756. It was actually proposed over 40 years earlier, in 1715, as part of a comprehensive plan to improve navigation and drainage throughout the country. However, little construction work was done until 1772 when the Company of Undertakers of the Grand Canal, as the company were so quaintly named, comprising major landowners and other notables, were formed by statute to undertake the construction of the canal from the River Liffey in Dublin city to the River Shannon near Banagher, County Offaly, and began the work in earnest. It took more than 30 years to complete the construction, about 1805, before boats could complete the 80 miles from Dublin to the River Shannon. In the meantime, an alternative link with the River Liffey in Dublin city was provided in 1791 at Ringsend, instead of the original link from James's Street, and extensive docks were constructed at Ringsend by 1796, at very considerable expense. As well, lengthy off-branches to the main line of the Grand Canal were provided to Ballinasloe, Killbeggan, Monasterevin, Mountmellick and Naas, and eventually the Grand Canal was linked to the River Barrow at Athy. Navigation on the River Barrow from Athy to St. Mullins, County Carlow, was the responsibility of the Barrow Navigation Company, established in 1790, and remained so until 1894 when the Barrow Navigation became part of the Grand Canal system and that company were dissolved by Act of Parliament.
In all, the Grand Canal system, comprising the main line and off-branches and the Barrow Navigation, involves more than 160 miles of waterways. It appears that over £1 million, an enormous sum of money at that time, was spent on the construction of the Grand Canal system, much of it from private sources. The Company of Undertakers of the Grand Canal were restructured in 1848, losing their grandiose name, to form The Grand Canal Company. The new company operated until 1950 when they were dissolved and the Grand Canal system was transferred to Córas Iompar Éireann by the Transport Act, 1950.
The Royal Canal was begun in 1789, to link the north bank of the River Liffey in Dublin city to the River Shannon at Tarmonbarry.
The Royal Canal Company, comprising major landowners and other notables, undertook the construction of the canal in competition with the Grand Canal, which was already well under construction and open to traffic for some distance. From the start, the Royal Canal was a doomed commercial enterprise, largely because it was too close to the main line of the Grand Canal. Even so, it appears that over £1½ million was spent on the construction of the Royal Canal system.
The Royal Canal Company experienced considerable financial and physical difficulties in undertaking the construction of the Royal Canal and, despite repeated parliamentary assistance, had to be dissolved by Act of Parliament in 1813. The completion of the canal was entrusted to the Directors General of Inland Navigation, the predecessors of the Commissioners of Public Works, who completed the link to the River Shannon by 1817. They were replaced in 1818 by the new Royal Canal Company established by Act of Parliament.
The new company took over the completed waterway and made a modest success of its undertaking yet the tonnage carried was still only a fraction of what was carried on the Grand Canal. The coming of the railways marked the end of the Royal Canal as a transport artery. In 1845, the Royal Canal was acquired by the Midland Great Western Railway Company of Ireland with a view to constructing a railway line along the bank of the Royal Canal. This it did and the railway runs alongside the Royal Canal for about 53 miles from Dublin city to beyond Mullingar in County Westmeath.
In 1877, the Midland Great Western Railway Company opened Spencer Dock on the Royal Canal near its link with the River Liffey. This greatly benefited the railway undertaking but the Royal Canal continued to decline. This was ironic as in 1792 Parliament authorised the Royal Canal Company to construct Spencer Dock as part of the Royal Canal system, and had grant-aided the company for the purpose. The work could not be done by the company because of the difficulties referred to. The Royal Canal has remained in railway company ownership since 1845. It has done so through the 1924 amalgamation of the Midland Great Western Railway Company with other railway companies to form the Great Southern Railways Company which in turn was dissolved to form Córas Iompair Éireann under the Transport Act, 1944.
The main relevance of the foregoing brief historical picture to the Bill is that Córas Iompair Éireann have owned the Royal Canal system since 1945, and have owned the Grand Canal system since 1950.
Commercial traffic on both canals continued to decline and became negligible. The result was that the Transport Act, 1958 gave Córas Iompair Éireann power to close the canals, or any part of them, to navigation which had not been used for public navigation for three years or more, while the Transport Act, 1960 gave Córas Iompair Éireann power to close the entire Royal Canal to navigation. Some Senators may recall that in the early sixties proposals were advanced to construct new roads over long stretches of both canals in Dublin city. There was considerable public objection to such proposals. Happily those proposals were not implemented and this Bill provides against such developments.
The virtually unbroken continuity of ownership of the canals for about 200 years means that there is in existence a considerable wealth of records relating to the canals and surrounding areas which would be of general public interest. Like the canals themselves these records can be classified as a national asset giving us a fuller picture of the social and commercial life of the period. In my capacity as Minister of State with responsibility for Arts and Culture, I have a special responsibility for the preservation of important records and, as far as is possible, making them available for inspection by the public. I, therefore, propose to discuss soon with Córas Iompair Éireann and the Commissioners of Public Works how best to deal with the records relating to the canals before their transfer to the Commissioners of Public Works.
I return to the community development aspect to which I referred earlier. Many imaginative suggestions have been made as to how the canals might assume their new role as a public amenity and generate worthwhile local employment. I have no doubt that the Commissioners of Public Works will welcome and carefully consider all such suggestions and any suggestions which Senators may wish to make will be welcomed by them.
The new public amenity role of the canals calls for a caring response from the public at large and local communities in particular, so as to safeguard and improve the amenity value of the canals. Much has been done to improve and restore parts of the Royal Canal by way of voluntary local effort and with the assistance of Córas Iompair Éireann, An Chomhairle Oiliúna and local authorities but, of course, much remains to be done, not only for the Royal Canal but also for the Grand Canal and Barrow Navigation.
The first task of the Commissioners of Public Works on taking over the canals will be to make a thorough assessment of the structural condition of the canals and their potential for development. It will be for the commissioners to decide and tackle priorities in the light of available resources, including assistance from local groups and other public authorities. The Government have decided that adequate resources will be made available to the Commissioners of Public Works to implement this Bill.
I now turn to the general provisions of the Bill itself. The purpose of this Bill is to transfer the Grand Canal and the Royal Canal from Córas Iompair Éireann to the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland. The Bill gives the commissioners the responsibility to maintain the canals as a public amenity, whether for navigation, fishing or otherwise for the enjoyment of the public. The transfer of the canals will mean that the commissioners will be taking over the ownership and care of more than 250 miles of waterways together with the canal banks, towpaths, lockhouses, docks and harbours.
As regards the actual date when all this will happen the choice of vesting day, to be appointed under section 18 of the Bill, for the actual transfer of the canals to the Commissioners of Public Works, this will depend primarily on when the Bill is enacted, and also on the completion of any practical arrangements for transfer. For the reasons which I have given, the earlier the transfer takes place the better, so that the canals can assume their new role as a public amenity and be cared for and fostered as such.
The Grand Canal and the Royal Canal need a new and flexible legislative framework in which to flourish. I believe the Canals Bill provides such a framework and guarantees that their future will be assured by the Commissioners of Public Works for the nation. Therefore, I look forward to the support of Senators in securing early enactment of the Bill.