Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to raise this very important topic. With all due respect to the rules of the House, I do not believe two minutes is adequate to properly deal with the devastation and disaster visited on the city of Limerick over the weekend, or with the destitution, misery, hopelessness and despair which followed in its wake. My constituents in Kings Island in Limerick city awoke on Saturday morning to their own particular version of Dante's Inferno and but for the dedication and professionalism of the emergency services, whom I thank and congratulate, there is no doubt lives would have been lost.

In the very short time available to me I wish to ask the Minister of State practical questions and I would appreciate direct answers because I am asking them on behalf of my constituents who are asking me the same questions. What will be the position on people whose houses have been destroyed and rendered uninhabitable? These houses fall into two categories, namely, those owned and rented by the local authority and those privately owned. Will the local authority effect repairs to these houses? Is it possible to repair them? Does the local authority intend to rehouse people, and if so when will something happen in this regard? Is it possible to have a timetable for this? The Minister of State will be aware from his visit to Limerick yesterday, which I welcome, that many of these people have been put into facilities for the homeless and others have gone to live with relatives. This situation cannot continue indefinitely. What is the position with regard to those who own their houses, particularly those who do not have insurance because they are specifically excluded from having flood insurance?

The Minister of State is aware the way of life of many people has been grievously disrupted by the events of the weekend. Some people have lost boilers and have no way of heating their houses and others have lost fridges or freezers and have no way of keeping food. Some have lost their cars. With regard to emergency provision for these people, how many social welfare officers have been allocated? What is the total amount of specific funding that has been allocated to deal with these issues? What is the timescale between application and payment? What is the Government's intention on general compensation? The Minister of State is aware that when 20 houses were flooded 15 years ago we received general compensation of £500,000.

Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The flooding in Limerick is unprecedented. I have visited the areas affected and the spirit shown by the people living there is nothing short of phenomenal. They rallied and worked with the services. Outside of Saint Mary's Park and Lee Estate, areas such as Athlunkard Street, Corbally Road, the Mill Road in Corbally and areas in Thomondgate were badly affected. People should never have to go through this again. Will the Minister of State advise us on the defences and procedures to be put in place to ensure this never happens again?

I welcome the fact €15 million has been set aside, but this must operate in a very efficient manner. Ballynanty Health Centre has been established as the location for the community welfare office but services for those who cannot physically visit the centre must be ensured.

The issue of insurance has been raised. Many of those living in the affected areas do not have insurance because they could not obtain it. How is this being considered in discussions with the insurance industry and in dealing with the loss of possession and homes, which Deputy O'Dea also raised?

Sean Hogan, the head of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management, was in Limerick on Sunday and the Minister of State was there yesterday. The Government appreciates the overwhelming impact this has had on people's lives. Will the Minister of State ensure the €15 million of humanitarian aid is fast-tracked for people living in the areas? Will he also deal with the issues of insurance and the defences being put in place? This is a real-life story for people living in the areas.

That is why I felt it important that the Minister, and Sean Hogan also, would visit the area to get an appreciation of what occurred. We now need to see timelines in terms of these measures being put in place for the people I represent in Limerick.

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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I remind the House that the other two Deputies have a separate Topical Issue in regard to the insurance matter. They will be dealt with separately.

Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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I thank both Deputies for raising this matter and I welcome the opportunity to address the House on the subject of the flooding in Limerick city. As the House will be aware, I visited Limerick city yesterday to see the situation for myself and to meet with people whose homes had been flooded, and it was heartbreaking to see the devastation that was caused. The Minister, Deputy Noonan, the Minister of State, Deputy O'Sullivan, and I, who were joined on that occasion by Deputy O'Donnell, assured the flood victims that support will be made available to them. I very much welcome the announcement earlier by the Taoiseach that an additional amount of €15 million in humanitarian aid is being made available by the Government to assist those affected. This will go some way towards dealing with the immediate financial needs of the people whose homes have been damaged.

I want to pay tribute to the tremendous efforts of the emergency response team, as both my colleagues have done, who put themselves in the front line in sometimes very dangerous conditions and whose dedication and skill helped to mitigate the very worst effects of the flooding event that occurred on Saturday morning. I would like to take this opportunity of thanking them personally for their work since this cycle of storms and flooding started. In addition, I would like to say that the community spirit, which came to the fore in Limerick city at the weekend, was heartening, with neighbours helping each other to deal with a situation that was very difficult. One of my abiding memories will be meeting a group of young men and women, a Civil Defence team, all under 18 years of age, who had been out over the weekend helping their fellow citizens. It was a fantastic sight to see the work of those young people.

The flooding levels reached in Limerick city at the weekend were the highest since the Office of Public Works, OPW, hydrometric section began recording data in the 1950s. Substantial flooding occurred at King's Island and at St. Mary's Park.

With the Minister and the Minister of State, Deputies Noonan and O'Sullivan, I visited the local co­ordination centre yesterday to assess the current situation and to offer appropriate help and assistance to the affected areas. It was agreed that works will commence straight away on the installation of a temporary barrier to adequately protect the island area from future flooding. I spoke this afternoon with the county manager and we have agreed that Limerick County Council will immediately begin putting in place this temporary measure, assisted and funded by the OPW. We want to see the work start immediately and both the manager and I agree that it will be started as soon as possible, funded by and with assistance from the OPW.

It was agreed also that the regeneration project for this area will proceed and that a permanent solution for flood protection of the island will be incorporated into the overall regeneration of the island. Limerick City and County Council will take the lead role and will be advised and funded by the OPW in regard to the flood relief elements of the works.

Some works have already been carried out to enhance flood defences in Limerick city. They date back to recent years and I will not go into them at this stage as I do not want to waste time.

The House will be aware that the interim report of the severe weather group was presented to Government on 13 January, which provided a preliminary estimate of the financial impact of the storm. A second report comprising updated and more detailed costings from affected local authorities on the storm damage and recent floods is being prepared, and the Government will respond accordingly when it examines that report. The Deputies should be aware that we have asked all the local authorities to submit reports by today. A memorandum will go to Government next week, 11 February, and as we have information from Limerick, Limerick's situation will be included in terms of the longer-term structural cost to homes, which I will deal with in a moment.

Obviously, what is needed in Limerick city, as in other parts of the Shannon, is to proceed with the catchment flood risk assessment and management, CFRAM, programme and that plan is already under way. We have established the Shannon CFRAM study. Jacobs have been the consultants. They were appointed in January 2011.

Much has been done and much progress has been made in tackling flooding problems throughout the country. In the past ten years we have spent approximately €370 million but it is fair to say much more needs to be done. Can I have some indulgence, Sir, in answering the questions the Deputies asked because I think it only fair?

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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The Minister can do that when he comes back in. The Minister's time has expired. If the Deputies wish to-----

Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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I have some brief questions for the Minister of State. First, is it the Government's intention to introduce legislation along the lines of what has been done in the United Kingdom to make it compulsory for insurance companies to insure against flooding for reasonable cost? Second, can the Minister give me an assurance that funds will not be diverted from the regeneration project in Limerick, and that this will be separate funding? Third, I welcome the provision of €15 million but does he consider it will be enough? In my opinion it will not be enough. Is it the Government's intention to increase provision if this is deemed to be insufficient? Fourth, has any application been made to the European Union for funding? My understanding from a contribution in the Seanad last week by the Minister of State, Deputy Costello, was that we would not be eligible under the EU funding scheme. The Taoiseach, on the other hand, stated today that he was examining the possibility of applying to the EU. Bizarrely, he mentioned the time the Rhine flooded. I am not too concerned about people living on the banks of the old River Rhine; I am concerned about people living on the banks of the Shannon, in Limerick. What is the position about applying to the EU for funding?

Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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There is an enormous sense of urgency in terms of Limerick because many people are out of their homes. Up to 300 homes are affected. The questions are simple. On an immediate issue, first, when does the Minister anticipate the Government will be in a position to do an overall assessment of the level of humanitarian aid that is needed in Limerick? Second, insurance is an enormously urgent issue in Limerick because as many of the people were living on a flood plain they do not have insurance, and we are talking about their homes. I ask the Minister to give us the timeframe in terms of when he will be in a position to provide conclusions and certainty to the people living in these areas in Limerick in respect of their homes.

Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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On the question of EU funding, the Government is reviewing this issue. We have over 100 days before an application can be made from when the initial storm damage was done in the first week of January. Limerick can be included in that.

As to the potential of funding, no one knows until we see the full scale of the damage. We have an initial amount of €65 million for the western counties from the first week of January, but more information is coming to hand. We have an open view about that. If we can obtain funding from it, we certainly will do so.

The Deputy asked me about my views on the €15 million immediate humanitarian aid. This is an immediate fund that we are putting in place. If more needs to be done, more will be provided. It is important, as Deputy O'Donnell stated, that people would start applying for the funds and that they can be turned around very quickly. I am aware some already have done that. The Minister, Deputy Burton, who is responsible in this area, has set up a separate section dealing with this issue in the Ballynanty Health Centre area. I understand they are staying open late. Equally, they have people on the ground to make sure we can turn around those applications as soon as possible.

If we need a separate fund for Limerick because of the scale of the structural damage, that will only become known once the full assessment is in by the local authority. In fairness to the local authority, and the Deputy will appreciate this, it is dealing with this since the weekend. It is dealing with it on a day to day basis at the moment.

There are three categories. There are local authority homes, which are ultimately the responsibility of the landlord, in this case Limerick City Council, and it will have to make applications to us as to what it wants to do with those particular homes. There is no question that the regeneration funds will in some way be supplementing the funds for flood defences but we must have regeneration and flood defence schemes operating hand in hand. As I walked around St. Mary's Park yesterday I discovered that some of the houses were due for demolition anyway because of the regeneration project. We have got to work at that on the same basis.

I met people yesterday who had insurance, and obviously their assessors are in place. We want the insurance companies to pay up in that circumstance.

For people who have major structural problems with their home but who do not have insurance, I would have thought that will require capital funding from the State. It is too early to say whether that can be obtained in the original €15 million allocation but, ultimately, a great deal of damage has been done. Structural damage has been done. Tens of thousands of euro worth of damage has been done to each individual home and if someone does not have insurance, we will have to work out with them exactly what can be obtained in each case as a means of making that house habitable again for that family or individual. I have done my best to answer all the questions.

This will be an issue in the coming weeks and I presume we will return to it.

Kevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Last Sunday was the 12th anniversary of the flooding of more than 400 homes in Ringsend and Irishtown. The issue of flood insurance has been on the agenda for those 12 years. Hundreds of my constituents can see the Aviva stadium on the horizon when they leave their homes every morning but they cannot get flood insurance from Aviva or any other company. Geocoding has been a disaster for Dublin and across the country because people can no longer get insurance for their properties. Action is urgently needed. In March 2013, the Joint Committee on the Environment, Community and the Gaeltacht heard that more than 50,000 homes were no longer able to get flood insurance. I would estimate the current figure to be closer to 100,000 hard-pressed homeowners, who are being discriminated against by the insurance industry. I am concerned that a cartel is forming to the effect that local households and business owners who have been geozoned cannot get flood insurance. In my constituency, the OPW has spent €15 million on flood defences and it is due to spend a further €10 million on the stretch from Ballsbridge to Clonskeagh. Even when this work is finished, however, the residents in the area will not be able to get flood insurance. In the UK there is an agreement with insurance companies whereby in return for the UK State's investment in flood defences, companies will continue to offer cover to homes at risk. Every pound invested in flood defences in the UK saves the insurance industry £7. We are investing the money but we are not getting the return. The Minister of State suggested on "Prime Time" last night that the State may consider becoming insurer of last resort. I ask him to update the house on that suggestion.

Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputies for raising this important issue, which Deputy Ciarán Lynch previously raised in committee last week. I am aware of the impact of flooding on businesses and households across the country. In regard to the issue of renewing existing flood cover, this is a commercial matter for insurance companies and must be based on a proper assessment of the risks they are accepting. These risks are often considered on a case-by-case basis and neither the Government nor the Central Bank has any influence in this regard. The Central Bank's consumer protection code does not include any provision to compel an insurance company to accept a particular insurance risk. Flood insurance is sometimes not economically viable for insurance companies and, in the interest of keeping premiums affordable for policy holders in general, insurers decline new or renewed flood cover for certain risks. These are commercial decisions that insurers make in the circumstances they face.

The fact, however, that at least 2% of households cannot obtain flood insurance is a cause of concern for the Government. The OPW has actively engaged with the insurance industry for some time on this matter. In January 2013 a working group, comprising representatives from the OPW, Insurance Ireland and the main household insurance companies in the Irish market, was established to consider the matter. It is important that the group's specific purpose and the role of the OPW in relation to it are clearly understood. The OPW has no role or function in regard to the oversight or regulation of the insurance industry. The discussions between the OPW, Insurance Ireland and the companies concerned are focused solely on agreeing a basis on which information can be provided to the insurance industry on flood relief schemes completed or funded by the OPW, and the standard of protection offered by these schemes. The discussions have been complex and technical in nature because it is important that all elements are addressed in a way that provides a robust and reliable system of data exchange.

The working group has made good progress and agreement has been reached on a data sharing platform which will facilitate the transfer of detailed information on completed OPW flood relief schemes on an ongoing basis. This will allow the insurance industry to take account of the levels of capital investment in flood protection measures over several decades by the OPW when assessing flood risk in the relevant localities. The initial focus of the group's work is the provision of information on schemes which provide protection for one in 100 year flooding events. The OPW provided an initial batch of information to the insurance companies and the latter are currently integrating the information into their respective operating systems.

A memorandum of understanding to guide current and future interaction between the industry and the OPW in regard to communications regarding completed flood defence works effectively has been agreed. I expect to be in a position to make an announcement in this regard as soon as the outstanding technical difficulties are resolved by the insurance companies. While the agreement on the memorandum of understanding is to be welcomed, ultimately it is for the insurance companies themselves to decide how they will use the information provided on completed flood defence works. They have committed to take into account the information in their own risk assessments and it is hoped this will facilitate the provision of flood cover in all areas protected by completed schemes.

I assure the Deputies of my intention to progress the matter with the industry and remind them of the avenue that is available to those with difficulties, complaints or queries in regard to insurance cover through Insurance Ireland's free insurance information service. In addition, the Financial Services Ombudsman deals independently with unresolved complaints from consumers about their dealings with financial service providers.

Kevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour)
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I am very disappointed with the working group. It has been meeting since January 2013 but we still do not have a solution. I find the Minister of State's answer unsatisfactory. The 2% figure to which he referred was inaccurate when it was first estimated and it has become even more inaccurate since then.

We are talking about 100,000 families.

This Government has to come up with solutions. In the United States, they have the national flood insurance program for areas such as Florida and Texas. In the United Kingdom, there is the statement of principles and memorandum of understanding involving a possible insurance levy of £10 per policy. A model was presented to the Joint Committee on the Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht by the National Flood Forum. There are solutions out there. We need to pick them and move on.

I have been at this since 2002. It has gone on far too long. The Minister of State may not have created the problem but it has landed on his desk. We need a solution. I thought there was some hope when the Minister of State stated on "Prime Time" last night that the State may have to be the insurer of last resort. These families want to have insurance. They want to pay for insurance. They cannot access it. The upshot of it is that the taxpayer still has to pick up the bill. If homes are damaged or undermined by flooding, we will have to put an emergency fund in place.

There are good precedents elsewhere as to how this could be dealt with. There are good ideas coming from the National Flood Forum. We have gone past the time for talk and moved on to the time for action.

Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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I want to be clear about what I and my officials have been engaged in for the past year and a half. As I have stated repeatedly, we have been sitting down with the insurance sector to find an agreement: first, that where we do work, such as major capital schemes up and down the country, the insurance sector would understand that the standard of such work reaches a minimum threshold of a one-in-100-year event; second, that such data will be transferred to the insurance sector in such a way that it can understand that such work has been completed and it has confidence in the work that the OPW has stood over or that has been contracted by other authorities on behalf of the OPW; and third, that the insurance sector can communicate that to its members so that there is clarity about the standard of that work. It is a memorandum of understanding. It is a voluntary agreement between two parties: on behalf of the State, this party; and PLCs. Private entities in their own right, these insurance companies can come and go from the Irish insurance market as they choose and can decide to insure what they want. In the great majority of cases, as the Deputies will be aware, the insurance companies have the information ahead of the State. They have had the information for years. They know where the flood risks are and they know the local authorities that have been building on flood plains as well.

Agreement has been the objective of the exercise and I want to bring that to a conclusion. I am not standing in its way. I am not the person who is preventing this happening. It is a matter now for the insurance sector to agree and I appeal to it to agree. I appeal to them to accept that the memorandum is a sign of good faith on the part of the State to prove to them that the State has committed many millions of euro in funding on behalf of the Irish taxpayer - €390 million in the course of the past decade - for the purposes of flood defences. The objective of the exercise is that when we get to the end of this process they will at least accept that the work that has been done by the State reaches that standard. We cannot then compel them to insure people and I never said we could. Despite the misinterpretation by some, I never said that. What I want to do is have that agreement in place.

If others are talking about a State indemnification scheme for insurance, that is a wider issue that involves many in government, much more senior than I. I would suggest to my colleagues opposite, if they are arguing for that on this complex issue where the liability to the State is a multiple of billions of euro, which may well determine the amount of liability that the State can cover, that we need to have that debate. That is what I was referring to yesterday on "Prime Time".

My objective is to get the memorandum through so that everyone agrees what we have done and the standard is there, which will at least provide some opportunity for people to get flood insurance cover. If, however, commentators are looking for some centralist or corporatist approach to this by way of a State indemnification scheme, they need to say how much that will cost, how much it will increase insurance premiums and the total potential liability, because if they are saying so, that is what it involves.