Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will communicate Deputy Naughten's concerns to the Minister, Deputy Coveney, and ask him to reconsider the request made earlier this month. An interdepartmental group is examining all the issues raised by Deputy Naughten and it will report early next year. A number of other issues are also currently being examined by the group. I remind the Deputy that we are spending taxpayers' money and, therefore, there must be a trail. It is not as simple as having a person show up at the Irish Red Cross office and say his or her property was flooded and needs €5,000. The Irish Red Cross cannot verify the cost involved there and then. It will have to be verified by the local authority. The scheme is not asking much from the business person. He or she will be getting €5,000, which is a fairly substantial sum of money. A further sum of money is also available, subject to further verification, if a premises has been flooded. The scheme could not be much simpler than what it is currently. I understand that a large number of business people have suffered losses of earnings and so forth but the Irish Red Cross is doing a fabulous job in administering the scheme and will turn over applications as quickly as possible.

I do not want the Deputy or anyone else to take me up wrong but there was a huge amount of hysteria on the part of our national broadcaster, in particular, for a number of days. It was almost at the point of saying that towns and businesses were closed and to stay away. A relation in Athlone told me that it was necessary for the town to say that it was not closed and that business premises were still open and trading.

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