Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for selecting this matter for discussion. It is important to the people of Cromane, County Kerry, on whose behalf I am speaking, that this matter is being discussed in Dáil Éireann. I thank also the Minister for being present to hear the case I am about to make and to discuss the matter.

Cromane is a small coastal community in mid-Kerry, overlooking Castlemaine Harbour on the Iveragh Peninsula. Other than for its natural beauty and vibrant mussel fishing industry, it is probably most famous in recent years for the likes of Donnchadh Walsh and Seán O'Sullivan and the great footballing tradition in the area. It is a beautiful part of the world, with great potential both from a tourism point of view and in regard to growing the mussel fishing industry to support local jobs and provide a future for the young people of the area. The people involved in the industry work hard and have been fishing for mussels for generations, although they have been doing it with virtually zero coastal infrastructure to help them do their work. I invite the Minister, if he is Kerry at some point, to come and see how the mussel fishermen operate and how they have to contend without support infrastructure.

The need for a pier or some form of landing facility has been a long-running saga over many decades. I recall it being talked about when I was in secondary school in the 1990s and it still has not happened. There are various reasons for that, but here we are in 2021 and it is still needed. I dearly want it to happen. We have examined various funding mechanisms and options, but one of the first steps that needs to be taken is to establish what the best solution for the location would be. To do that, feasibility and design funding is required, and that has been difficult to come by. Thereafter, of course, construction funding is required as well.

Prior to Covid, I was trying to bring together a stakeholder forum, with all the players in the locality, the State agencies and the local authorities around the one table to try to work out a roadmap. Will the Minister provide a representative from his Department, in an advisory and consultative capacity, to help with the work of such a forum? Separately, will he examine the local authority element of the fishery harbour and coastal infrastructure development programme? It is quite restrictive in that it is capped at €200,000. While it has been very beneficial - do not get me wrong - to many places in Kerry and throughout the country by providing funding, for places such as Cromane where there is existing economic activity within the industry but zero infrastructure, I would like exceptions to be made in order that there could be feasibility and design funding to build that necessary infrastructure. Just because it was never there in the first instance should not mean that places such as Cromane would be left. It is important that we reconsider the upper limit of €200,000, which is not what it used to be, not least with the level of inflation in construction costs.

The 75% contribution element could be looked at. I am interested in hearing the Minister's thoughts.

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