Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his response, which provides information that I have received previously. As I stated, the expenditure of €4.2 million was between 2011 and 2014, as was the allocation of €1.7 million which was supposed to have been spent this year. The additional funding since 2011 was critical to preparing and commencing this urgently needed programme of dredging.

The Minister referred to a €150,000 preparatory report which will hopefully be ready in the next month or so. I will certainly welcome that. I hope it will be published widely and that we will then know exactly what has to be done. In his reply, the Minister of State said there was no information on costings except that the cost will be substantial. We know the cost will be significant, and I hope the Department begins to work on the costings immediately on receipt of the scoping report on how the dredging project can be carried out and its likely timeframe. The Howth Harbour action group accepts that the planning and licensing process takes time, but it could push the dredging project way out to 2017, 2018 or 2019. Obviously, that is not going to be good for any of the leisure users or the working fishery users of the harbour. I notice that in the 2016 budget expenditure report, the Minister has €200 million set aside each year for capital projects in 2016, 2017 and 2018. It would have been handy to have him here to discuss this. While in overall global terms it might be small, a significant sum of perhaps €2 million or €3 million should be set aside to facilitate proceeding with the project as a matter of urgency.

When I tabled a recent parliamentary question to the Minister, Deputy Simon Coveney, he could not give me figures on the employment statistics relating to the private and State organisations operating out of the harbour centre. Hopefully that information will become available now, along with information on all aspects of the economy of the centre. Mr. Doran's enterprise alone supports approximately 100 jobs. The bottom line is that marine safety is the core value for all seafarers and their support workers onshore, including the Minister of State and me. The great inconvenience and danger posed to fishing and leisure craft must end and we must proceed with a dredging programme as quickly as possible. Hopefully, the Government might be able to include the dredging project for Howth as part of the good news in the pre-budget announcements before the its term of office ends.

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