Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

In recent days, the Irish Examinercarried a feature on some of the most enjoyable walks in Ireland. Second on their list was Swan Park, Buncrana, County Donegal. Eight months ago, that riverside park was destroyed by the floods in the Inishowen Peninsula. I have raised this repeatedly in this room. This is a major tourism amenity in the second largest town in Donegal. I do not know anywhere in Ireland where this would be tolerated. As a Member of this House, I have yet to get a meeting with a Minister. I have yet to sit down face-to-face with a Minister, and the Leader knows that this was promised to me. I have stayed silent for all of these weeks in good faith but nothing has happened. There has not been a single face-to-face meeting with a Minister about the fact that a major tourism and community amenity, beloved by our community and our visitors, has been absolutely destroyed.

The cost of restoring this park has been estimated at €2.3 million by Donegal County Council. Some contribution from the Government would be welcomed at this stage. I appeal to the Leader again today. Parliamentary questions have been tabled and I have raised the matter face to face with Ministers in brief conversations in these halls. However, I need a proper meeting with senior Department officials present. Costings have been sent to them by Donegal County Council but Departments are batting questions on the issue back and forth to each other.

Across all parties, all nine county councillors in the Inishowen Peninsula have asked for a meeting on this matter with the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government, Deputy Eoghan Murphy, and the Minister for Rural and Community Development, Deputy Ring. A petition signed by over 4,000 local people was recently handed to the Minister, Deputy Eoghan Murphy. I make the appeal again today for a cross-party delegation of local councillors from Inishowen and all the local Oireachtas Members to meet the two Ministers, thrash this out and find a solution. It is absolutely intolerable that after eight months, I read in one of our major national newspapers that we have the second most enjoyable walk in the entire island and that walk lies in ruins.