Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The reality is I do not know which Minister is responsible for calling the emergency task force together, assuming it is a Minister. It might actually be an official. However, we must learn from these mistakes. We also need a Minister to take charge of Departments' responses. A short-term response that gets people back in their homes and protects those homes is critical, but we also need a longer-term response. I have been told that a number of Departments are responsible. I am referring to the Office of Public Works, OPW, and the Departments of Transport, Tourism and Sport, the Environment, Community and Local Government and Agriculture, Food and the Marine. A Minister must be appointed to pull all of these together with a view to a long-term response.

The current allocation of €45 million for coastal protection is inadequate. We need a budget ten times that as a starting point. The only way to prevent this situation from recurring is to ensure that we put the proper structures in place.

I will conclude with a couple of quick points.