Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)

The waterways in south Kildare are the Barrow and the canal. However, I do not see their value in terms of the number of boats on those waterways. My concern is that we have wonderful waterways but we do not seem to get the number of tourists to match the amount of money put into them. In England and the Continent there appears to be far greater use of barges and boats on their waterways than is the case here. A survey in Athy found there were 65 boat owners in the area, but one never sees 65 boats on the waterways.

The Minister spoke about sponsorship and mentioned €1 million. I am not sure if he meant that was the total expenditure, but perhaps he would send me a breakdown of that expenditure in terms of working with other groups. In a recent parliamentary question I received a reply about sponsorship by Waterways Ireland but perhaps there was other sponsorship or dual funding that was provided to other areas. What can be done to generate more interest in the waterways? Does Waterways Ireland have a link with Fáilte Ireland to generate more interest and encourage more boats on the waterways or is there too much cost involved? It is a wonderful facility and there are wonderful walks along the waterways but we do not appear to benefit from them.

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