Eugene Murphy (Roscommon-Galway, Fianna Fail)
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The final Topical Issue is in the name of Deputy Seán Barrett who I got to know from his time sitting in this Chair over the years. It is nice to see him as a Deputy representing his constituency. He has a question for the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport on the future development of Dún Laoghaire harbour and the recently developed plans of the Dún Laoghaire Harbour Company. He has four minutes to put his question.

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Acting Chairman for his kind words and the Ceann Comhairle for selecting this topic. Dún Laoghaire harbour is very dear to me. I have been a resident and a native of Dún Laoghaire for almost 72 years and I know the harbour backwards. I was also Minister for the Marine and Minister for Defence in the mid-1990s when we put through the Harbours Bill, which is now the Harbours Act. The legislation incorporated a new way of managing Dún Laoghaire Harbour, that is, through a State-owned company with a board of directors.

Since that time, people have had other ideas about what should or should not be done with Dún Laoghaire harbour. This is a valuable and quality national harbour, as are the facilities attaching to it. Anyone who takes a walk out there on a Sunday afternoon will see thousands of people walking the piers. It was infamous from the days of the mail boat and dating back to when kings and queens landed in Dún Laoghaire on their way to visit Dublin city. Its history speaks for itself.

That is all very well but we now have a harbour company that does not know where it is going because people have been changing their minds - I do not include the current Minister in these comments because he has only recently taken over. I sincerely hope he concurs with my view, that is, that the harbour company should remain as it is.

The harbour is a valuable asset. It had the potential to produce well in excess of €10 million in revenue every year. Unfortunately, however, because of the demise of the Stena ferry, revenue is now hovering at approximately €4 million or €5 million. There is hope that the harbour will attract another carrier in the not too distant future, perhaps next year. Those involved are also developing plans for cruise ships to visit Dún Laoghaire harbour because of the massive development that has taken place in Dublin Port. Thankfully, because of the economy, business in Dublin Port is increasing on a daily basis. Therefore, harbours like those at Drogheda and Dún Laoghaire have become valuable assets.

Two important issues arise. The first is the management of the future of the harbour. I am making this suggestion to the Minister because I believe it is such a valuable asset and not because I was the person who put through the legislation, together with my colleague, a former Tánaiste. The idea that it would be put into the hands of the local authority is questionable. Frankly, the local authority does not have the expertise to manage harbours, especially commercial harbours that can produce revenues on that scale. Specific expertise in managing the various facilities is needed, whether they are leisure facilities or commercial facilities. The Stena port area can be developed for leisure, commercial and residential facilities. That part of the harbour does not interfere with the normal day-to-day walking tourist in the area.

Will the Minister look into the whole question of title? This arises from the transfer of the harbour to the harbour company. As the Minister with responsibility at the time, I understood that all the assets, including the title of the buildings and the foreshore, would automatically transfer to the harbour company. Now, apparently, there is a dispute over whether some of the developments put in place for the ferry service are, in fact, the property of the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government on the basis of the Foreshore Act. The title issue is most important.

Second, will the Minister once and for all establish the future of the harbour company in order that we are not left wondering where it is going to end up? Will it end up as part of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council or with another port company? That is the purpose of my requesting the forbearance of the Minister this afternoon.

Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent)
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I thank the Deputy for his raising this Topical Issue. I presume it is the first one he has raised on this side of the House. Indeed, he must consider himself lucky to have been selected as I imagine he now realises how lucky those of us were whose matters were selected by him over the years.

I have the same affection as Deputy Barrett for Dún Laoghaire harbour and for Dún Laoghaire because I used the harbour as a child, as he did, and I lived in the constituency for many years as well. Nothing would please me more than to see it restored to commercial prosperity or to see the activities which used to exist return, such as the mail boat. However, at the moment, as the Deputy has so well outlined, many of those activities have ceased for commercial reasons. Therefore, the harbour company and others, including the local authority and my Department, have been looking at ways of adapting to the changes that have taken place. I realise they are not satisfactory to everyone. Indeed, I believe there has been a good case made for both sides. Ultimately, however, if there is not a commercial future for Dún Laoghaire in the old ways, the ways of the ferries and freight, then we have to look for new ways to bring it into a profitable and environmentally-friendly state.

In recent years, Dún Laoghaire Harbour Company has been restructuring its business to keep it on a sustainable financial footing and to enable the harbour to develop and operate on a commercial basis in future.

The port continues to face a challenging financial and operating environment as it transitions from commercial shipping activities, with the cessation of the Stena Line service, towards a different model which is more focused on marine leisure and marine-related tourism, while it prepares for transfer to the local authority. The company has been pursuing a twin strategy of developing alternative income streams from marine leisure and tourism-related business, while also reducing its high cost base.

The Dún Laoghaire Harbour master plan, published in 2011, identified the need to develop strategies to ensure the long-term future of the harbour in view of the declining importance of ferry traffic at that time. Since then, Stena Line has withdrawn its ferry service from Dún Laoghaire Harbour. Stena Line had operated the HSS Stena Explorersince 1996 during which time the vessel carried a mixture of passengers, car and coach traffic.

After the withdrawal of duty-free shopping, passenger and car volumes declined dramatically and, by 2014, fewer than 150,000 ferry passengers travelled through Dún Laoghaire Harbour. This represented a decline of over 90% in volume. This, combined with increasing fuel and operating costs, made the route unsustainable. Dún Laoghaire Harbour Company is seeking alternative providers to operate a seasonal service on the route. A call for expressions of interest in operating this service has issued on eTenders. It is hoped that a replacement passenger service might be possible at some stage in the future. The departure of Stena Line adds to the future challenges for the company. The financial impact on the port is significant and it is clear the company now faces a very different financial and operating environment than it faced previously.

The possible development of the cruise business was identified as one of the opportunities to be pursued in the master plan. A cruise stakeholder group was established, comprising the Dún Laoghaire Harbour Company, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and the Dún Laoghaire Business Improvement District. The harbour company prepared a business case for the construction and operation of a cruise facility. This study advised that the optimum method of expanding the cruise business into Dublin Bay was to construct a dedicated cruise berth that would be capable of taking vessels greater than 300 m and preferably being able to accommodate next-generation cruise ships at 339 m. The study estimated the cost of a new cruise berth of this size would be approximately €15 million to €18 million. The expansion and development of the cruise business would undoubtedly offer significant economic benefits to the port and the surrounding areas.

Since 2011 some progress has been made in attracting cruise business. In 2013, eight vessels in excess of 300 m visited the port for the first time, while four smaller vessels also came alongside. Six cruise ships visited Dún Laoghaire in 2014, eight in 2015 and up to eight cruise calls are expected this year.

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister. The management of the harbour is the point at issue. With the greatest of respect to the local authority, I do not believe that the skills are available within the local authority structure to manage a vital asset such as this. The harbour company, if proper directors who know their business are appointed, can see to the future development of this harbour in a proper regulated fashion.

I was involved in the development of the harbour's marina, which is probably one of the best marinas in Europe at the moment. It is full. It was developed through public funds. We supplied the funds for the inner harbour to protect the waters and as a result the ordinary individual in a small boat can sail safely within the harbour.

There is also the possibility of developing a diaspora centre, which is an attractive proposition for an area like Dún Laoghaire with its history of emigration from and immigration into Ireland.

The real point at issue here is not whether the revenue will be €10 million or €15 million, but that it be run properly and have a proper management structure with an independent board of directors who have the experience, can see the potential and can develop all of these things.

We have been talking about a diaspora centre and future developments in other parts of the harbour. These things are being spoken about, but nothing is happening because it is in limbo at the moment. Now that we have a new Minister in place, I am asking him to make a decision once and for all as to the management structure for the future. I recommend having a harbour company that is a limited company with professionals who know about marine issues on the board and who will see to the future development based on the potential of Dún Laoghaire.

Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent)
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The Deputy has put his finger on what is obviously a very controversial area. There is a dispute about the ownership and future model for Dún Laoghaire Harbour. The problem has been the transition for the company, which may not have been able to respond fully and effectively to commercial conditions and the series of unfortunate events, particularly the withdrawal of the Stena Line service, which has forced it to make certain changes depending on tourism, maritime interests and other similar areas.

The authorities are looking very carefully at the prospects for an international ports policy to insist that the ports and harbours exist in a competitive environment. That obviously involves new commercial ventures such as accommodating cruise ships and other options in Dún Laoghaire which are already being explored.

The Deputy will be aware of the St. Michael's plaza project and the urban beach. I gather there is even a proposal for a floating hotel in Dún Laoghaire Harbour. All these kinds of commercial projects should be investigated because they are good for the area and good for employment.

My Department is aware that the ongoing challenge for the port will require sustained effort across a number of fronts. This may even involve the sale of some non-strategic assets. The company is examining a number of possible future projects and is exploring the concept of locating a floating hotel in the port - that is a ship permanently moored in the port operating as a hotel. The company has recently informed my Department that it hopes to advertise on eTenders shortly for expressions of interest in this proposal.

The ongoing viability of the company requires that a rigorous regime of cost control across all activities be applied and maintained, and that the viability of any proposed project must be examined thoroughly. As outlined in the national ports policy published in 2013, the sustainable development of certain port companies is best placed within a local authority-led governance structure. Under the policy, Dún Laoghaire Harbour Company, as a port of regional significance, is designated for transfer to Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council.