Joe McHugh (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Browne, to the House. He is well aware of the safety needs of the seafaring people in Buncrana because he has received questions and representations relating to it. He has signed off on the foreshore licence, which I welcome. I wish to put on record the work of the late Fine Gael Councillor, Mr. Jim Sheridan, who worked tirelessly and relentlessly on this issue, making representations to the Department and through Deputy Coveney.

On 10 February, Deputy Coveney submitted a question to which he received a reply to the effect that funding will depend on available Exchequer funding and overall national priorities. There are two parts to my question. Will the ministerial portfolio allow the facilitation of a ferry at an estimated cost of €110,000? The Minister will be aware, living on the coast, that the RNLI is a very proactive group. I do not need to emphasise the necessity for a launching pad for the new RNLI boat. It is a priority for the community and it has been lobbying through Mr. Liam McGee on a continual basis for the past 12 months.

One funding option is to provide only for the ferry crossing. This will be from Buncrana to Rathmullan. This will be a tourism project and will also facilitate the large movement of people within Donegal. The Flight of the Earls commemoration will take place in 2007 and the ferry must be an integral part of that project. There are two funding options. The option I seek is the facilitation of the ferry and the RNLI boat. The two must come together. Funding for one will not be good enough and will do an injustice to the efforts made, in a cross-party political fashion, at local authority level. The local authority, through its engineers, has made a huge contribution in terms of time, resources and expertise to try to get this project off the ground. It has worked tirelessly and relentlessly. As one of the few dual mandate holders, at a council meeting on Monday, I received the news that there will be a start-up date for the ferry.

Funding is the issue. The Minister is in a corner, but I believe he will use his good judgment. I am not here to make a party-political broadcast. What we are interested in here is the good of Donegal. Representations have been made by both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. I ask the Minister to heed members of his party in Donegal. I speak on behalf of Fine Gael, as did the late Councillor Jim Sheridan. We need the ferry, but we also need the RNLI launching pad. I hope the Minister will have good news.