Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to raise this issue, clarify some matters and seek information from the Department regarding its response.

I empathise with everyone who has been and continues to be affected by what has been happening since the weekend. We can only hope and pray that their homes, businesses, livelihoods, farms and so forth can be saved from the disaster that many fear is imminent despite their efforts to withstand the pressure being caused by the floods. It is only right and proper that we acknowledge and pay tribute to the various stakeholders for the help that has been given across the country from Crossmolina to Bandon and everywhere in between, including Athlone, east Galway, Clare and Shannonbridge, Shannon Harbour, Banagher and so forth in my county of Offaly. I refer to local authorities and their staff, the Red Cross and volunteers, but also to the great community spirit that has been shown by everyone involved in the efforts to help in urban and rural areas.

The difficulties are continuing. Unfortunately, it emerged in recent weeks that the Office of Public Works, OPW, had underprovided for flood defences by €15 million. This is cold comfort to the people in question, but it may offer an opportunity for the Government to ensure that sufficient resources and funding are available to address the issue. From a humanitarian perspective, it is the responsibility of the Tánaiste and the Department of Social Protection to respond to those households that have been affected by providing white goods, clothing, bedding, food, etc. Funds should be made available immediately.

The minor works and drainage works schemes have been cut by 3% per annum since 2010. That remedial and preventative work was carried out by council staff. As Deputy Fitzmaurice stated today, there has been a loss of up to 60% in local authorities' outdoor staff in recent years. The ensuing problems are crystallising as we speak in terms of insurance. People are beginning to ask about accountability and culpability. We wonder about promised flood defence mechanisms and the funding that, despite being available from the Department for onward transmission to local authorities, was not drawn down. Could it be that people will be in a position to ask questions of those whose foot-dragging may have caused this problem?

The previous major storm struck in January 2014.

The local authority in my county proposed that the Department meet the cost it had incurred. It is currently incurring costs. The cost of the works in respect of which it made its proposal amounted to €439,000. Eventually, after six, eight or ten months, the local authority was reimbursed to the tune of €43,000. While local authorities and the other stakeholders are making every effort to address the difficulties that exist, they need to hear from the Department that they will be reimbursed in full, irrespective of the cost, without foot dragging by the Department in making the funds available. In this way people can be safe and secure in the knowledge that every effort is being made and that every possible source of funding is being used by local authorities to address the difficulties in the full knowledge the local authorities will be reimbursed. This has not been the case in recent years.

Paudie Coffey (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Alan Kelly, who, as we know, is out of the country.

I wish to be associated with the comments of Deputy Cowen on how we should empathise with all those who have been seriously affected by the recent flooding and past flooding. We have seen footage of flooding that has affected homes, businesses and farms. I can only imagine how stressful it is for all those concerned. I agree with the Deputy on the various State agencies, local authorities, voluntary groups and the emergency response unit, which have responded, as always, in a very positive way to assist those in most need.

On Thursday, 3 December, a high wind and rainfall weather system was flagged by Met Éireann. This is the first time a red level warning, which is for rainfall in excess of 70 mm in a 24-hour period, has been issued since Met Éireann put the Meteoalarm warning system in place.

My Department has been assigned the lead departmental role for responding to a number of emergency scenarios, including severe weather and flooding. As a result of the Met Éireann warning, my Department asked the Office of Emergency Planning to convene a national co-ordination group. Since it was convened, last Thursday, the group, led by my Department, has been meeting routinely in the National Emergency Co-ordination Centre to assess the threat level based on the weather forecasts in addition to information on river levels and flood forecasts as part of a co-ordinated national response. On 4 December and 5 December, local authorities convened their severe weather assessment teams. These teams anticipated problem areas, based on Met Éireann's weather forecasts and OPW flood warnings received, and activated their crisis management and local co-ordination arrangements and responses. Protocols for inter-agency collaboration with An Garda Síochána and the HSE were also activated to co-ordinate the response. No major emergency was declared but severe weather emergency protocols are part of the major emergency plans in place in all the principal response agencies.

The entire outdoor staff of local authorities in the worst affected areas worked since Friday, with area engineers directing operations and fire services responding to life-threatening situations and incidents where pumping was appropriate. Local authorities have also mobilised their Civil Defence services. In Donegal alone, 97 volunteers were involved in supporting the local response. Other voluntary organisations, such as the Red Cross, Mountain Rescue and the Coast Guard unit, have also been mobilised to provide assistance at local level, as required. In addition, the Defence Forces were active at the request of the local authorities, and they have assisted communities from Cork to Donegal. They are currently heavily involved in assisting communities in Athlone and Clare.

Local authorities are continuing to monitor circumstances in areas regarded to be most at risk based on both forecasts and OPW warnings. Local authority crisis management teams will continue to manage and direct the overall response at local level and liaise with the national level bodies. The work of local authority area engineers and outdoor staff has continued where flooding threats remain.

My Department wrote to local authorities on 9 December asking them to compile an initial estimate of the damage caused to public infrastructure in their administrative areas as a result of the severe flooding. The information received from local authorities will form part of the report that the Minister will use to update the Cabinet on Tuesday.

With regard to communications between local authorities and residents in affected areas, there has been direct contact in many cases between local authority staff and residents in areas considered to be at risk of flooding. I note that the first priority of the local and national responding agencies is public safety, and local authorities have been using a number of methods to get public safety messages out to people in their areas. In addition to utilising social media, a number of local authorities have been issuing SMS texts directly to people in their functional area.

Local authorities are using the OPW's guidance messages on planning for responding to and recovering from flood events. They will continue to link and work with residents to protect their homes and will offer any assistance they can to residents who are making efforts to put mitigation measures in place. Local authorities also support the evacuation of residents where inundation cannot be avoided.

Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for his response and clarifying the total commitment of local authorities to working with everybody concerned to ensure the public is informed and assisted and that no stone is left unturned in helping everybody affected.

I am conscious that the Minister of State said the Minister, Deputy Alan Kelly, will be updating the Cabinet on Tuesday on the perspective of his Department which has responsibility for local authorities. With this in mind, I remind the House about certain occurrences in the hope they will not recur this time around. There was under-expenditure by the OPW in the order of €15 million on flood defence mechanisms. Only one tenth of the cost was reimbursed to councils further to the damage caused two years ago. Councils, the public and Members need to be reassured that no obstacle will be in the way of the Government when funding local authorities to ensure the sort of response our constituents deserve.

Having met representatives of the ESB today, it continues to be apparent that the organisation believes any alterations to address water levels in Lough Derg will not benefit anybody in my area or that of Deputy Fitzmaurice. It has no control and no obligation and there is no coming together of minds to address the silt issue that was raised earlier today in the House and by many of our constituents over recent years. The Government and its predecessor committed funds for drainage works in the River Brosna, but they were brought to a grinding halt by bodies such as the fisheries authority and the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

Despite previous commitments, I would like another commitment to be given today to help the people at the coalface whose livelihoods have been destroyed because of a lack of cohesive action on the part of all the relevant authorities. I want the Government to commit to bringing together all the relevant stakeholders, including the ESB, the OPW, the relevant Departments, the National Parks and Wildlife Service, the fisheries authorities and the IFA. Reason has to win over. Although we hear about the environmental impact of various works that are required, unfortunately it has come to the stage where the common good has to be prioritised. This year, we noted the figure for drainage works has been reduced by 3% since 2010. It is a year in which the OPW spent €15 million less than it had committed for drainage works and in which the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government has not fully reimbursed councils. I will be obtaining the national figure in the coming days. In my county, which has been greatly affected once more, only 10% of the cost of rectification works was paid to the local authority. I have fears in this regard that need to be addressed. I hope the Minister of State will do so right now.

Paudie Coffey (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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I reiterate that there has to be a cross-government response involving the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, the OPW, the Department of Social Protection in so far as it supports families who are directly affected, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, all the agencies that come under the Departments, and the local authorities. They need to try to work together to mitigate the flood risk and assist those who are worst affected.

My colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Simon Harris, is making an announcement regarding a further assistance programme to be administered by the Office of Public Works. Officials from the Department of Social Protection are available and are providing direct assistance to those affected by the floods, including those who had to leave their homes.

It is important to acknowledge the excellent response led by the local authorities to this severe weather crisis that is being delivered under extremely difficult conditions. I thank the principal response agencies, volunteers from the various agencies and Defence Forces personnel who supported the local authorities during the response phase. In addition to the national and local government response, it is a feature of this type of weather crisis in Ireland that communities come together to assist their neighbours in responding to the crisis. This has played a major role in contributing to the relief effort and I thank those who have taken time and resources to support their neighbours in their communities at this time of need. Local authorities and supporting agencies remain in full response mode and the national co-ordination group is meeting daily to update the threat assessment at national level.

The Deputy raised some valid points. It should be recognised that much progress has been made in the provision of flood relief schemes in areas that had been severely affected by flooding. While these recent efforts have had some degree of success, I accept that this will be of little comfort to those who are affected by the current flood event. We must continually work together and collaborate to mitigate the flood risk for as many citizens as possible.