Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As it is my first time speaking in the Chamber, I thank the people of east Galway who elected me and gave me the opportunity to represent them. For those who do not know east Galway, it takes in people from Portumna to Bearna to the sea at Kinvara down to Gort and Athenry and all the way down to Tuam and Headford. I humbly thank them for giving me this opportunity.

My comments will focus on flooding, which has affected south and north Galway for the past number of months. Newly elected colleagues eagerly await the commencement of work on real issues of concern to our constituents and the people of Ireland in general. My mission statement when entering public life remains the same today. It involves representing the young and the old and people in rural and urban areas on local, regional and national levels by giving voice to their concerns, needs and aspirations for local provisions, services and living standards across key areas of agriculture, education, health, employment, finance, safety, security and other emerging issues so that, in the near future, communities can enjoy the true values of security and prosperity and the fruits of their own hard work, time, talents and skills in a fair and honest society that is rooted in our Irish tradition.

In speaking for the flood-weary people of east Galway, I speak for people right across our country who have endured indescribable hardship because of flooding this past winter. I speak about the winter of 2014 but it also happened in the winter of 2009 and if one goes back to 1995, that was when people in Peterswell were worst affected. While the stench of damp carpets, rotting furniture and cracked floorboards has greeted families returning to their homes in some areas, others' homes such as those in east Galway remain uninhabitable and farms are submerged for the foreseeable future. I spoke to a farmer the other day who is selling off his stock. He reckons that he will not have grass until after the Galway Races. With no solution in sight, must these families now accept flooding as a recurring annual event in their lives simply by virtue of where they happen to live and the planning deficiencies of recent years? The hardship and grief of losing one's home and treasured memories compounded by loss of a livelihood in farming defies description. How will these people fare with their insurance companies now and in the future? That is the question. Householders who have erected barriers since flooding in 2009 succeeded in keeping waters out this past winter yet are rewarded by denial of cover by insurance companies. I congratulate Mr. Joe Healy, a fellow county man, on his election as the new president of the IFA. Mr. Healy and I face huge problems as we see farmers going out of business due to flooding. When will the OPW enact its relief plans, which have been drawn up for a period of considerable time? This is something which must be addressed as a matter of urgency. It is not something that can be shelved and lip service paid to whenever flooding occurs. Tell that to the people of Crannagh, Peterswell, Tarmon, Cahermore and Skehanagh.

Rising insurance premiums reflect a combination of Government imposed costs, poor regulation, mismanagement by the insurance sector and legislative failure. All of us have spoken today about rising costs in insurance but the people from east Galway that I represent cannot get insurance at any price. In January 2016, Fianna Fáil published legislation to ensure flood insurance cover is provided where OPW flood relief schemes have been completed or where the risk of flooding is at an acceptably low standard. The Bill provides that where the OPW has completed a flood relief scheme to European standards, resulting in the flood risk being reduced to a one in a 100-year possibility or where the OPW deems the flooding risk to be extremely low, an insurance company must offer flood insurance at a price that a person can afford.

This Bill is also relevant for areas where the scheme is to be carried out into the future. Furthermore, the Bill outlines the respective roles of the Financial Services Ombudsman and the Central Bank in ensuring its full implementation.

Deputy Danny Healy-Rae spoke earlier about the Catchment Flood Risk Assessment and Management, CFRAM, report. This also affects me in respect of the Shannon catchment area. It is a desktop exercise in certain areas where it says there is a one in ten, one in 100 or one in 1,000 year risk that the flood could happen. That draft plan has not been implemented. We are talking hypothetically. Levies are being raised from people in those areas and we have not adopted maps. It also affects how county councils make decisions on planning. Where flood issues have been addressed in Ballinasloe, Clonmel, Fermoy, Mallow and Kilkenny these people still have to pay a full premium on their insurance which has increased. We can praise the Office of Public Works, OPW, where it has put in proper flood defence mechanisms because it has saved these towns the guts of €900 million yet we penalise businesses and householders. Is that correct? Is that right?

Fianna Fáil acknowledges the need to address the lack of insurance in areas which remain prone to flooding. Models such as the flood relief scheme in the United Kingdom are being examined and proposals for adaptation to the Irish situation will be published.

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