Eugene Murphy (Roscommon-Galway, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Like Deputy McConalogue, I appreciate the fact that we are having this debate this evening and thank him for all the work he has done in this regard. As Deputy McConalogue said, I visited Donegal with the party leader and I never saw such devastation and appalling damage in my life. I heard Deputy McConalogue, the Minister of State, Deputy McHugh, and others speak on the radio about how bad things were and how badly people were affected. I also heard the Minister of State, Deputy Moran, speak about the flooding but it is only when one goes to the Inishowen Peninsula and one sees the utter devastation that one realises the extent of the damage. Irrespective of how good the defences were it was impossible to prevent the damage taking place.

As Deputy McConalogue said, it was amazing to see the attitude of the community. I heard much praise for the emergency services and the way people worked. Deputy McConalogue and the Minister of State, Deputy McHugh, know very well how people worked to get others out of very difficult situations. Looking at the devastation and the levels to which the floods reached I believe the unique response resulted in lives being saved. There is no doubt about that. When Deputy McConalogue showed us the devastation on the Inishowen Peninsula we could not imagine how lives had not been lost. A major tribute is due to all the people there who were involved in the response.

The flooding in Inishowen opens a bigger debate. All of us in this House will have to realise that there are massive changes occurring that are affecting the climate. Time and again in recent years we have witnessed flash flooding and torrential rain. I looked up some statistics recently and it is not the case that there is a significant increase in the overall levels of rainfall but it is the pattern of the rainfall that is causing the devastation. I mentioned two figures to the Minister of State, Deputy Moran, previously. In Roscommon in one evening in June 2016 a total of 74% of the average rainfall for June fell in three hours. A similar situation arose in Donegal recently in the space of two hours. I believe 60% of the average rainfall for the month of August fell. That clearly indicates we are dealing with a different situation and we will all have to assess how we respond to it, regardless of the side of the House we are on. We will have to work together.

When we look across the Atlantic we see the absolute terror and disaster that struck some of the islands. God forbid that it would come to this country. We have the wild Atlantic at our back door. For an island country on the periphery of Europe we do not in any way have adequate defences. While everyone is trying to do his or her best it will take more of an effort and require more money. A total of €480 million has been allocated over a five-year period but that will have to be increased. Even allowing for the type of storm that occurred in Donegal, one point was made to me time and again there, namely, the lack of maintenance. That is an issue all over the country. Last December the Government launched a plan to dredge the Shannon. The Minister of State, Deputy Moran, has spoken about the project in Banagher and some work has been carried out. However, we have lost almost one year and none of the work has been done. An arrangement was made with Bord na Móna on the River Shannon to remove silt and peat from the river but that has not been done either. We will have to carry out improvements and ensure regular maintenance is carried out throughout the country. I have no doubt we will face major problems in the coming years and we will have to be prepared for them. Engineers Ireland stated that our flood defences are below standard. It was said that we do not have proper flood defences and that our infrastructure lags behind. We must remember that we are an island country on the periphery of Europe and we are open to irregular weather patterns, which are becoming more challenging. We will all have to up the ante and do much more.

We must also tackle the insurance industry and make sure people are not discriminated against and that insurance companies do not cherry-pick people in these difficult situations. I will hand over to my colleague, Deputy Anne Rabbitte.

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