Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I fully agree with the Deputy. In our memorandum of understanding we hope that where we have done the work and put in the investment, for example, in Mallow, Kilkenny and Dublin, there is an understanding in the industry that a standard has been obtained. That has not happened thus far. An exchange of information between us and them will be the key in giving them the confidence to offer reinsurance in that area. The problem is, where we have not spent the money, it is difficult to hold out the hope that insurance will follow. That is why we have the catchment flood risk assessment and management, CFRAM, process, which is the wider scheme under which we are examining the flooding maps across the country and assessing on a river catchment area what needs to be done and how long it will take.

When I first came to the OPW and met engineers in Trim, I was told in very blunt terms that there were approximately 250 so-called hot spots throughout the country where tomorrow we could have very significant flooding damage. That has been fed into the CFRAM process, which we will present to Europe by the end of 2015. Then, for the first time ever, we will have an overview of how we will tackle this problem. If I had €3 billion tomorrow, we would get all the 250 hot spots done now, but I do not. We must prioritise, with the resources Government has given us on the capital side, to maximise effect. There are also examples where we are not waiting for CFRAM. We have examples where we have brought schemes forward because of the intensity of the situation that faces those communities. That is the case in Cork as well.