Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State. That is a very positive development in regard to Castletownshend. Obviously we knew the planning permission has been granted, but that we can expect work to commence in 2022 will bring much solace to the people of Castletownshend, business people and residents alike.

In my remaining time I have another Irish Water related issue to raise regarding my home town of Clonakilty. I know the Minister of State is a big fan of Clonakilty and visits it regularly. Clonakilty is one of the main towns in west Cork. It has a population of about 5,000 people. It is my home town. It is earmarked for growth of about 36% as one of the key towns in County Cork. In regard to development in Clonakilty at the moment, however, Irish Water's position is that it will not allow development of more than one house in the town. It will not allow water connection for any estate of 20, 30 or even 50 houses. Therefore development cannot take place. To put that in context, the demand for and price of housing in that area, like everywhere else, is skyrocketing. Availability of premises to rent is non-existent. There is nowhere left to rent.

Our aim as a Government is to deliver 33,000 homes per annum but in a town the size of Clonakilty we are only allowing the development of one house. This flies in the face of what we are trying to achieve. I do not expect the Minister of State to be familiar with the exact details of this case. Irish Water has indicated a period of five to seven years will be needed for an interim solution. That is far too long for anybody who is looking for a house in the Clonakilty area. I ask again that the Department intervene and instruct Irish Water to find a better interim solution.

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