David Cullinane (Sinn Fein)
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The Minister of State has indicated that he is a keen fan of sailing. If he had been in west Waterford during the month of August, he would, in the aftermath of the heavy rainfall, have needed a boat to make his way around certain parts of the area. This matter relates to the impact of said rainfall on the roads in west Waterford.

On 12 August extensive damage was caused to roads in the Lismore electoral area and west Waterford in general. Over 40 millimetres of rain fell in a four hour period and this resulted in roads being washed away, mudslides, debris being washed onto roads and extensive surface damage on many local roads. As the Minister of State will appreciate, there was heavy rainfall for the remainder of August and it continued into the early days of this month. This led to the problem being exacerbated. Waterford County Council estimates that the cost of repairing the damage will be €2.5 million. It has written to the National Roads Authority and the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport seeking assistance in repairing the damage. The National Roads Authority has advised that it has no additional funding available and that the council should reallocate its specific improvement grants. In fact, the council has already done this, but it only enabled it to free up €600,000. That amount will only allow it to repair a small number of the roads on which work will be required.

I am aware that many roads throughout the country, even those in the Minister of State's constituency, require repair. However, in this instance, I am referring to serious damage that has been done to many local roads, a large number of which remain unusable and those who live on them are badly affected because there are often no alternative routes for them to take.

As stated, the estimated cost of the repairs is €2.5 million. Waterford County Council has submitted to the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport an extensive list of the roads involved, the nature of the repairs which must be carried out and the cost of these repairs. I have a copy of the list in my possession and can give it to the Minister of State if he so desires. It shows that the county council has already assessed repairs requiring the allocation of €1.8 million, €1.3 million of which relates to repairs on local primary roads. As stated, many such roads are currently impassable. The council simply does not have the means available to it to carry out the necessary repairs. Like other local authorities, its budget has been continually cut during the past four years. In addition, road maintenance grants have been cut in the past four or five budgets.

Many of the roads in County Waterford to which I refer are in a bad state of repair. The director of services with responsibility for roads in the county is very concerned that if the repairs are not carried out now, the cost of making them next year will be much higher. The State would actually save money if the necessary funding was made available now to allow the roads to be repaired. Remediation works should be carried out now because otherwise some of the roads to which I refer will be either washed away completely or will decay into an even worse state of repair. This is a serious issue which must be addressed.

It is unusual for very senior officials of local authorities to lobby Oireachtas Members and other elected representatives. Those in County Waterford have gone to that extraordinary length as a result of the serious nature of the problem. I ask the Minister of State to give genuine consideration to this matter and ascertain whether extra funding might be made available for the repair of the roads to which I refer.

Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Senator for raising this very important and serious issue in his constituency. I am replying on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Leo Varadkar, and thank the Senator for giving me the opportunity to address it in the House.

The improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads are the statutory responsibility of each local authority, in accordance with the provisions of section 13 of the Roads Act 1993. Works on these roads are funded from local authorities' own resources supplemented by State road grants paid by my Department. The initial selection and prioritisation of works to be funded is also a matter for local authorities. The Minister announced regional and local road grant allocations for the current year on 30 January last. A total of €376 million is being provided under the regional and local roads investment programme this year. From that allocation, Waterford County Council is being provided with over €9 million. The level of grants allocated to individual local authorities is determined having regard to a number of factors. These include the total funds available in a particular year; eligibility criteria for the different road grant schemes; road pavement conditions; length of road network; the need to prioritise projects; and competing demands from other local authorities. In determining the annual grant allocations, the overall objective remains to supplement the resources provided by each local authority in a fair and appropriate manner.

Last month Waterford County Council wrote to the Department seeking additional funding of €2.5 million for the repair of roads in the Lismore area which had been damaged as a result of extensive rain and flooding. The council was informed that my Department would facilitate any revision it wished to make to its 2012 specific improvement grant allocation in order to accommodate rehabilitation works on roads damaged by the recent bad weather and floods and the deferral to 2013 of less critical works. The council was also informed that the 2012 regional and local road grants had been fully allocated. Given the current financial position, there are no further funds available from which an allocation for these works could be made. It should be noted that the Department's current and capital expenditure is ahead of profile and that it is highly unlikely there will be any savings or unspent funding by the year end. Capital expenditure is actually €46 million ahead of profile, while current expenditure is €48 million ahead of profile.

Between 2002 and 2012, Waterford County Council spent more than €168.7 million on regional and local roads. Of these moneys, 76%, or €128.2 million, was provided through State grants, with the remaining 24%, or €40.5 million, coming from the council's own resources. In view of the current economic difficulties, it is vital that local authorities prioritise increased expenditure from their own resources on their roads programmes. Each authority must carefully reassess its provision in light of the impact of the weather on road networks.

David Cullinane (Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister of State for his reply. The reality, however, is that local authorities will find it very difficult to raise the extra money locally given the constraints on their already limited revenue streams, including rates. The bottom line is that they require the support of central Government, particularly in respect of their roads programmes. I accept that the Government has a limited pot of money, but we are dealing here with exceptional circumstances. Roads have effectively been washed away as a result of unexpected volumes of rainfall. Local authorities cannot plan for such situations and there is a responsibility on the Department to do what it can to assist them. Will the Minister of State raise this matter with the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport with a view to providing further assistance for Waterford County Council?

Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I certainly will bring the difficulties the Senator has outlined to the attention of the Minister and will also raise them at tomorrow's management board meeting. As the Senator knows, when the allocation for local government is made, there is an expectation that some local authorities will not draw down the full amount and that the surplus arising as a result can be reallocated to those authorities which may require it as a consequence of circumstances such as he has outlined. As it stands, we are looking at a €2 million overrun and are hoping that some funding will not be drawn down by other local authorities. As a member of a local authority for many years, I am in complete agreement with the Senator that there will always be unforeseen events and emergencies. In Mayo, for example, we often had to deal with floods, landslides and so on. An option that might be available to Waterford County Council would be to reallocate any funding that has not yet been drawn down for identified roadworks in order to deal with the current crisis. The departmental officials have confirmed to me that the situation there is very serious, with roads in very poor condition. I agree that something must be done and will convey that view to the Minister.