Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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Yes, I have one or two little things. I want to thank the secretariat here, including Alex and the whole crew.

We had that family in over the Mary Kate ship a long time ago, and we were just looking for updates on that because it is going back nearly six months now.

The committee had agreed that we would appoint a marine barrister to review all the records of that beam trawler. I do not know what the progress is on that.

I would like to give a little update on another matter. I know the gang affected by the flooding in east Cork, particularly in Mogeely and Gleann Fia. Their situation is very different. I see it from the correspondence here. It has been a bit slow. I love the way the lady on the correspondence said all they were asking for was for the Government to look at Gleann Fia with a value-for-money view and to protect them for future flooding as opposed to a full relocation cost at the site value of over 100 residents. Under the minor flood mitigation scheme, some money has now become available so it might progress their issues a bit faster. I flag with the committee that I have met with other families in different estates. There is a tranche of money coming out. I might as well put it on the record that the flood gates that you can attach to your windows and front and back doors are probably after tripling, if not quadrupling, in price since the floods. Those who make them now know that there is grant money available. That is putting families under pressure. However, the houses in Gleann Fia are very different because they are timber-framed and are vented. There is a major need for land mitigation. The OPW has visited it but I want to keep it on record to keep it hot.

Finally, I see correspondence back from Cork County Council about a matter that has been ongoing for a long time in Cobh. The Cathaoirleach would be familiar with Deepwater Quay in Cobh. It is about a right of way. I will record a quote here from Cork County Council. It has been very fair but I wish to flag this:

As regards that particular property, Cork County Council is aware that the Deep Water Quay at Cobh is private property owned by the Port of Cork. Cork County Council is aware that claims have been made that there is a public right of way over it but those claims are disputed by the Port of Cork, and the dispute has been subject to litigation and it is accordingly not the role of Cork County Council to adjudicate upon that dispute.

It goes on to say:

Given the ongoing dispute before the Courts concerning the right of way over the Deep Water Quay, it is not appropriate at this time for Cork County Council to consider the alleged public right of way for inclusion in the County Development Plan.

I am surprised. The next county development plan is in 2028. God only knows if they will still be fighting or litigating in the courts over this. I thought the Port of Cork belonged to the people. I want to flag that. They were on about different planning and development Acts, including the 2000 Act. It is very interesting that it can be changed through a county development plan. I am interested in the suggestion that we will have to wait for the next one in 2028. When I sat on Cork County Council, a county development plan could be amended at any time. I have been involved in stuff like that. Would it be possible to write back to Cork County Council? I notice there is something legal there but that barrier can be removed. If the Port of Cork is part of Cork, Cork County Council is part of Cork, Cobh is part of Cork and the quay is part of Cork, why cannot we change the development plan now to include this right of way along the quays? Tourism down around Cobh is absolutely massive. What I love about Cobh is that all the entities, including the Tidy Towns committee, the chamber of commerce and the sports clubs, work together. This is another valued amenity. We should not try to fix something that is not broken. Would it be possible to write to Cork County Council to ask or suggest that the existing county development plan be amended, with the agreement of those who are looking for the right of way to be returned, Cork County Council and the Port of Cork?