Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats)
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I have a few questions for the Minister of State. The first relates to what he just spoke about in regard to IFI. We will not go into it now but there are obviously issues if the entirety of a board resigns. That would illustrate that there are considerable issues with the entity. Is there a review planned of IFI and its functions? IFI is in a difficult position because it is responsible for the conservation of fish stocks but at the same time it also has an angling function and sometimes they can be very difficult to marry. I wonder whether there was a bit of a lost opportunity when the National Parks and Wildlife Service, NPWS, was being reviewed to look at whether components of IFI could have been incorporated into the NPWS remit from a conservation perspective. In reviewing the functions of IFI, is there a plan to look at what the governance issues were, why there were such difficulties for the board and what can be done to resolve them?

I also have questions about the illegal dumps the Minister of State mentioned. These are specific questions so I am not sure if he will have the information in front of him. Whitestown in County Wicklow is probably one of the ten illegal dumps. Is there an update on it? Specifically, how much it will cost? Is the Department contributing to that? My understanding is that under the Court of Appeal decision, it was to have been remediated within three years. That was 2019, so we are probably coming close to that point now.

I would also welcome a more detailed update on the dump near Bray, in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, that the Minister of State mentioned. What is happening with it? What money is being allocated and when will it be resolved? Could I also have an update on the Avoca mine remediation? That would be great.