Brian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail)

I would like to read from a letter I received from the Minister, Deputy Dempsey, in recent weeks concerning the Malin Head and Valentia marine rescue co-ordination sub-centres. I wrote to the Minister impressing upon him the urgency to review the impending decision in light of recommendations made by Department of Transport officials. He stated in his reply:

My ambition is to put in place a service which will meet the needs of this country well in the 21st century.

The communications system is the backbone infrastructure on which Coast Guard operations depend. It is essential that it is of high quality, efficient, effective and that it provides value for money. I am concerned at the state of the present equipment and have confirmed that a €2 million investment in essential equipment should proceed without any further delay. I have also confirmed that this equipment should be sufficient to operate two fully manned Co-Ordination centres. I have also confirmed that locating one on the east coast and one on the west coast is the preferred option and that the east coast centre should be co-located with the HQ. These decisions were made against the background of a study completed by Deloitte and Touche in 2002.

Following that study I understand a decision was taken by the then Minister not to proceed on the basis of the recommendations in the study. However, I understand that in October 2007 the assistant secretary in the Department issued his report which was based on much out of date information which has been rebutted by the Inishowen Development Partnership. In its response to the assistant secretary's recommendations it referred to facts regarding the electricity supply to Inishowen, the broadband service and some socio-economic issues. I refer to a letter sent to the Inishowen Development Partnership from the area manager of the Electricity Supply Board in Donegal, which stated:

Our records show that there were four interruptions in electricity supply to the Coast Guard Station in Malin Head in 2007. Two of these faults were during storm conditions in January, there was a planned interruption in April and a fault in November.

The most important line in the letter was as follows: "Excluding storm damage, this performance was better than the national average". This would suggest that the references in the assistant secretary's report to out of date ESB equipment is not true. I would like the matter to be reviewed and for us to receive a response.

Senator Keaveney covered the issue of broadband. Broadband is readily available within 500 m of the Coast Guard station. Broadband is also readily available on a radial broadband programme from Limavady, which is just across the sea in the North of Ireland. Broadband is not an issue and electricity supply is not an issue. The socio-economic issues referred to in the report that went to the Minister and on which this decision is based, must be disregarded. The findings of that report must also be disregarded.

The idea of a new station in Drogheda is not supported by any rational argument. The chart of VHF sites clearly shows that the Drogheda station would be sited less than 80 miles from the Northern Ireland station at Orlock Head. The chart also indicates the restricted area of responsibility of the Irish Coast Guard in the Irish Sea. Approximately 80% of this area is covered by the UK services under existing agreements on marine rescue co-ordination. This means that a station on the east coast would not cover the total sea area, whereas on the west coast and in the northern area the next port of call is Iceland or America. There is a vast geographical area that is not covered, whereas the east coast has the coverage from the UK authorities working in conjunction with the services here in Ireland.

The Inishowen Development Partnership, the local partnership in Senator Keaveney's area in the peninsula of Inishowen, is fighting on the ground to retain the services at Malin Head. The partnership outlines that Malin Head and Valentia have years of experience of supporting existing services and have a pool of qualified applicants readily available from the fishing industry if the need arises in those Coast Guard stations. Headquarters, stores, logistics, administration and training of staff could be concentrated in a facility in Drogheda as proposed. However, the Malin Head and Valentia facilities should remain. We are dealing with geographically dispersed areas, a fishing fleet and a tourism sector. We are talking about pleasure craft coming into areas like Killybegs and the fishing areas around the Donegal offshore islands. As pleasure craft use those facilities on a regular basis, it is essential to have cover in those areas.

As late as this week the Malin Head station assisted in the rescue of two lifeboat men who were winched to safety on Sunday morning from the sea approximately 600 m from Bundoran. That rescue was co-ordinated by the Malin Head Coast Guard. I am glad to acknowledge that it was a successful rescue. Such rescues are vital for the people who live in the west and north west. The Malin Head Coast Guard facility is located in an ideal environment to work in close co-operation with the authorities in Northern Ireland. I strongly agree with all Senators from both sides of the House that the Minister should revisit the proposed decision regarding this matter. The recommendations of an assistant secretary may be well meant coming from the viewpoint from the 2002 report. However, in my view and the view of the local development association in Inishowen and the local community they are based on out of date information, which simply does not stand up.

The Inishowen Development Partnership's comments are primarily based on information relating to Malin Head. However, common ground exists between the Malin Head and Valentia stations, as they are both fishing areas with a large number of fishermen and considerable activity at sea. The report by the assistant secretary appears to be based on out of date information regarding the electricity supply, communications infrastructure and socio-economic shortcomings of the area. The assistant secretary's report, which appears to be informing the Minister's opinion, should be reviewed. The Minister should consider the retention of the stations at Valentia and Malin Head. If there is a need to have a headquarters in Drogheda, so be it. Let us have the headquarters in Drogheda or in a location close by as proposed. However, the services should be retained in Donegal and Kerry. The political viewpoint coming from today's debate should inform the Minister's decision.

I was glad to see in the last line of the speech of the Minister of State, Deputy Michael Ahern, that the Minister for Transport, Deputy Noel Dempsey, will take into account all the views expressed by Senators here today. I call on the Minister to do that. He should ensure these services are retained in order that communities in the west, including the north-west, can rest assured that the current service provision will remain. The Government's regionalisation policy should be maintained.