Mr. ?anna Rowe:

We have an internal dispute mechanism. It is contained in our customer services strategy. If somebody is not satisfied with the result of the internal customer complaint process, the recourse is, first, to our chief executive and, second, to the Ombudsman. The process is modelled on the customer services strategies that have developed across government, both North and South. It is the exact same as what applies elsewhere. I assure the Deputy of that.

The Deputy asked about the annual registration of permits and the visitor permit. The introduction of the new visitor permit came from recommendations we received under phase 1 of the consultation. The intention was that anybody entering any of the systems, whether through Limerick, Dublin, New Ross or the systems coming in on the Shannon-Erne waterway, would pay the full €200 for a permit to bring a boat onto our systems. Following phase 1 of the consultation and having considered the submissions we received, we have amended the 60-day visitor permit and put it at a level that will allow people to bring their boat in for three months for a reasonable cost. That brings an equity to the system.

The second point to make, now that we may have an assembly up and running again in Northern Ireland, is that it is our ambition to bring in the exact same licensing under the Erne by-laws in order to have a whole-of-island approach. The annual permit of €200 for the canals and the Shannon would also be in place for the Erne.