Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

Dáil Amendment No. 177 amends the Lough Corrib Navigation Act 1945 by the insertion of two new sections into that Act relating to the Lough Corrib navigation trustees. The trustees were established under the Drainage (Ireland) Act 1856 for the purpose of managing the Lough Corrib navigation. They consist of eight councillors drawn from Galway City Council, Galway County Council and Mayo County Council, who are supported by those councils in their work. They are responsible for the maintenance of navigation aids and some piers on the Corrib system, the Eglinton Canal system and associated walkways, tow paths, lock gates and boundary walls. The purpose of these amendments is to address a legal anomaly that has come to light caused by the repeal of some of the Drainage (Ireland) Act 1856, under which the trustees were established. Subsequent to the 1856 Act, another Act, the Lough Corrib Navigation Act 1945, reconstituted the board of trustees but did not amend, vary or restate the functions of the trustees as provided for in the 1856 Act.

Since the matter was raised, my Department sought and received legal advice on the implications of the repeal of the 1856 Act. This advice indicated that while the trustees continue to exist by virtue of the 1945 Act, the legal basis to carry out the functions previously conferred on them by the 1856 Act needs to be reinstated at the earliest opportunity. The amendments to the Lough Corrib Navigation Act 1945 do just that. They reinstate the powers and functions of the trustees, albeit in a modern way, and are akin to functions of Waterways Ireland under the Shannon Navigation Act 1990, by which that body manages the Shannon navigation. In summary, those functions include the power to manage and hold land, prepare schemes for tolls and licensing and delegate some functions to the three relevant councils, namely, Galway City, Galway County and Mayo County councils. In addition, for the purpose of managing and maintaining the navigation, they reinstate the power to enter on lands for the purpose of carrying out work on the navigation, using or occupying lands for the purpose of undertaking such work, and undertaking inspections and surveys of the navigation. They also set out the arrangements to apply when notifying landowners of the need to access lands for these purposes and arrangements for compensation for loss or damage that may arise in consequence of the trustees carrying out their functions in this regard.

To reiterate, the provisions are simply reinstating the functions previously conferred on the trustees by the 1856 Act. It is proposed that they will come into operation on enactment of the Bill. I hope Members will support this essential amendment.