Averil Power (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Hayes, to the House. I tabled this matter to highlight the need for a proactive strategy for Howth Harbour. The harbour is massively under-utilised from the point of view of fishing, marine leisure activity and the broader tourism industry.

In 2009 the Minister of State's Department commissioned a report specifically on the fishery aspect of the harbour; it was a report covering a business plan for the development of the fishery harbour centres. That report set out many areas where Howth Harbour could be further developed but, unfortunately, most of what was suggested has not happened. I urge the Minister of State in his new role to put an emphasis on the development of our fishery harbours.

A local business contacted me about the obstacles it is facing in setting up a repair facility at the harbour. One of the areas identified as an area of potential development in the 2009 report is that of repair facilities. It is stated numerous times in the report that there is a need to enhance and develop the repair facilities in Howth Harbour and this has also been highlighted by other independent reports commissioned by the Minister of State's Department.

The majority of the work carried out in Howth is done by foreign companies operating from Kilkeel, County Down. If vessels require anything more than very minor repairs, they usually travel to Kilkeel because they cannot get them done in Howth. The State loses revenue every time this happens and it makes no sense.

A company called Fleet Marine based in Howth goes on site in the harbour in vans to carry out minor maintenance work, but cannot do bigger jobs because it has no workshop in the harbour. There is demand for it. Howth Yacht Club wants these facilities, as do other people with boats based in the harbour. They do not want to have to go to County Down; they want to do it in Howth. Fleet Marine has put a number of proposals before the Department and has been contacting the Department for at least a year. Although it has identified suitable empty facilities, it has come to nothing. Could the Minister of State investigate this? It is a major loss of potential business for the area. It is disadvantageous from a fishing and from a marine leisure point of view not to have proper services on site. It puts people off coming to Howth.

Howth Harbour is an amazing facility. Although it is one of the most beautiful parts of the country with a beautiful harbour, fine restaurants and a great tourism service, the harbour area is underutilised. In places on the Continent that have half of what we have, the water is full all the time. They hold festivals, have maritime museums in France and make the most of their facilities from a tourism, community and leisure point of view. Local community groups and Howth Yacht Club have done amazing work in attracting major events such as the Etchells World Championship. Howth is Magic is a business group that puts together festivals such as the Dublin Bay Prawn Festival. However, such groups constantly tell me that every time they want to hold an event, the red tape is ridiculous and it puts people off holding events. Howth is Magic must go through a laborious process of sending in the same information it sent in for the previous year’s festival and not knowing whether it will get approval. From the point of view of a tourism calendar, such events need to be confirmed months, if not a year, in advance. If one is going to promote an event internationally, one needs certainty and does not need to be arguing with local authorities, marine officials or anyone else two or three weeks before it, wondering whether one will get permission. There is a desperate need for a broader strategy that sets out the type of events, whether fishing, marine or leisure, that should be provided in Howth and gives people a framework within which they can work. If one is running the same festival as last year, one should not have to resubmit the same traffic management and health and safety plans that worked last year. It should be more straightforward once it is within an agreed framework.

I ask the Minister of State to take this on as a priority. I encourage him to visit Howth. I live a couple of miles down the road and will bring him out any day to meet the business people and see the potential that exists. It is an area where the Minister of State could make a mark if he put a positive impetus behind it. It would do wonders for both leisure and employment in the area. I hope the Minister of State will give it his attention.