Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)

I have not spoken personally to Captain Newport but I am aware of his comments. I want to take this opportunity to compliment him again on the wonderful job he did at the time the boat unfortunately sank in the Bay of Biscay. I am also aware of the crew's comments. My advice, however, is that despite those comments it was uncertain what condition the Asgard would be in if we salvaged it. There is no hard evidence available to me that the vessel would be repairable or that it would not be irrevocably damaged during the course of a salvage operation. That is the scientific and engineering advice I have received. The people who undertook the ROV survey were in no position to give a clear yes or no on that question. All they could tell us was the position of the Asgard. They confirmed that the vessel was in an upright position, but they were not able to confirm that it would have survived a salvage operation and that it would be repairable for a reasonable cost if salvaged. In the current economic circumstances in particular, I could not afford to take the risk of blowing €2 million of taxpayers' money on what could be a futile operation.

As regards the competency of the board of Coiste an Asgard, there are many excellent people on the board. Many of them have extensive experience in these matters and they also have advice available to them if and when they need it. Therefore I must take seriously what they say. The board's recommendation was unanimous — that it would be too risky to proceed with the salvage.

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