Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 348: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the steps he has taken to tackle the illegal bonfires throughout the country around Halloween time; if he has established a working group to discuss with local authorities ways in which to protect public lands from fire damage and from the associated debris; and if he has considered allocating additional funds to local authorities to allow them to provide safe areas or secure platforms on which bonfires can be lit and supervised by responsible adults. [36945/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The provision of a fire service, including the assessment of fire cover needs and the allocation of the appropriate level of resources to meet those needs, is a statutory function of the individual fire authorities and my Department has no direct role in this matter. My Department supports the local fire authorities through the setting of general policy, the provision of capital funding, the issue of guidance to fire authorities in relation to fire prevention and operational matters, and other such initiatives. I have no plans to provide any funding to local authorities to facilitate the holding of bonfires at Halloween or otherwise, as the concerns involved related not only to public safety but also to air quality and emission controls.

Over the past 25 years, almost €240 million has been provided to local fire authorities under the fire services capital programme for the provision of new and refurbished fire stations and the purchase of fire appliances and other equipment. This sustained investment means that the fire authorities are very well equipped to address the full range of risks to which they are likely to be exposed. At this stage, over two-thirds of our fire stations, including almost all of the busiest stations, have been replaced, we have a modern fleet of front-line fire appliances, and we have a modern emergency response communications system. In the current year almost €20 million was allocated to the Fire Services capital programme; this allocation is being used to further modernise and update the resources available to the fire authorities. In addition, since 2001, my Department has provided almost €4.2 billion in general purpose grants to assist the local authorities in carrying out their statutory functions, including the provision of fire services.