Frances Black (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I will start with amendment No. a1w. This amendment is necessary as it is not acceptable to introduce legislation to apply penalties without any independent appeal mechanism other than the courts. It is not appropriate to make canals less user friendly by discriminating against tourism development on our canals through the introduction of a completely different set of rules, charges, regulations and fines that are not in place on the adjoining waterways. How will that encourage tourism growth?

The Inland Waterways Association of Ireland, IWAI, has called for a dedicated canals Bill with proper pre-legislative consultation with canal users, local canal communities, elected local authority representatives, local authority management and the tourism sectors. It believes it is a negative and imbalanced approach to introduce legislation that penalises 99% of waterways communities to address the problematic area of 1% due to unlicensed boats harbour hogging. These matters can be legislated for without effectively penalising the other less populated areas.

The proposed legislation should promote the development of the tourism potential of the canals and support tourism initiatives on the canals such as the IWAI green and silver circle trip to Dublin via both canals. Equally, it should provide for the regulators and the users requirements. In the absence of alternative private marinas on the canals, it should provide for boaters moving through these linear waterways in safe areas, not isolated known problematic areas, and without having to risk fines of €150 per day after five days. It should allow for the introduction of by-laws that put user requirements, tourism development and local communities at the centre of the regulations in a manner that allows adequate consultation. It should ensure that the enforcement of penalties regime governed by these by-laws includes a suitable independent appeals mechanism. It should protect and maintain navigation heritage and usage for future generations.

The IWAI advised that while it would welcome and support proper regulations, the proposed Heritage Bill does not put user requirements, local communities or tourism at the centre of the regulations. Rather, it is a heavy-handed approach that will result in a detrimental reduction of boat traffic on the canals.

The proposed Heritage Bill gives Waterways Ireland the authority to appoint officers to carry out stop and search and seizure activities on boats and personal property on the Grand Canal, the Royal Canal and the River Barrow. In the Republic of Ireland, search and seizure acts are limited to a number of specially trained and professional groups such as gardaí, health and safety inspectors and Customs officers.

The boats affected by this new Bill include residential barges, hire boats and barges, restaurant barges, motor cruisers and fishing boats. Boats will opt to move to the other Irish waterways managed by the same regulator, Waterways Ireland, where the regulations and facilities are more user friendly and there are no oppressive fines and penalties.

The powers proposed in the new Bill will affect those on the waterways of Carlow, Dublin, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Longford, Meath, Offaly, Westmeath and elsewhere.

I refer to amendment No. a1aag. It is not acceptable that persons other than An Garda Síochána, a Customs officer or a health and safety officer have the right to stop and search boaters, walkers and cyclists on Waterways Ireland property such as the canal towpaths, greenways or blueways. Section 7(c)(2) would give the right to stop and search to any authorised officer. Local authority elected representatives have already stated that. It is unacceptable that a body with no corporate governance structure or board will be empowered to bring in any by-laws they want with only 21 days consultation. That is insufficient time to allow the local authority to consider any proposed by-laws.

It is not appropriate to legislate for the introduction of fines and regulations that are overly penal, will not encourage use of the canals and that are not in place on the other Irish inland waterways under the management of Waterways Ireland. No other similar body has those sort of powers. Coillte, Irish Parks & Wildlife Service and Office of Public Works officers do not have those powers. Why should Waterways Ireland not use the gardaí instead, as everyone else does?

Waterways Ireland should be required to make available hard copies of by-laws to gardaí so that they can make those available to people arrested or charged under those by-laws. It is not acceptable that Waterways Ireland has the right to impose fixed payment notices without providing a suitable appeals process. The suggested appeals process entails a court appearance. That may prove too costly for some people. It should be possible for the appeal to be made by simple e-mail to any appeals section as is the case with the parking or motor tax fines issued by some parking companies on behalf of local councils. An appeal e-mail can be sent accompanied by scanned copies of any relevant documents and the outcome of the appeal can be conveyed to the appellant within 28 days.