Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The proposed new section 5(1)(b) reads: "Waterways Ireland may designate particular parts of the canals and other canal property for particular purposes including purposes incidental to such purposes as aforesaid." It would appear to me that temporary closing for the kind of activity the Minister mentioned is not the designation of a particular part of the canal for a purpose because the purpose still would be navigation except in that very specific time limited exception. There is a concern that canals or waterways might be designated in the long term for purposes other than navigation. I do not think anybody is talking about any because that is dealt with in other parts of the Bill.