Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for being present to reply on this matter. Over recent months the Minister and his officials have kept the Dáil and the relevant Oireachtas committee well informed regarding the work the Department is doing to tackle the issue of what will happen to communities whose homes have been flooded regularly, most recently in October and November last year. The updates have centred on two areas. The first is the physical work that has been done by both the Department and the local authorities on preventative measures to ensure either that the areas will not flood or the risk of them being flooded is massively reduced. The other area is one on which the Minister has been working, the discussions taking place between the Department and the insurance industry.

I will outline the situation in which many of my constituents find themselves.

They are resident in areas that have been flooded but where the council has carried out flood repairs. The insurance companies, however, still will not insure them. Many of them now find themselves being hit by a triple whammy. The first is that they have been flooded regularly in the past, and the fear of it happening again in future remains. Often it is more than a fear; it is a possibility. The second is that many of them now, because of the point when they bought their houses and what has since happened, have seen the values of their homes being massively affected. The third problem is that they cannot get house insurance. They love their homes and are proud of their communities but the values of their properties have fallen dramatically. They cannot get house insurance and if any of them wanted to sell, which most do not, they would not be able to do so.

Dublin City Council is working on many of the flood prevention measures so what options are open to people in areas where work has been done or is planned but insurers refuse to provide insurance? In such a situation we should be able to perform some sort of role to ensure these people are given the protection they deserve. It is not their fault they are being flooded. It is a result of action that was taken elsewhere.

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