Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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14. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if, in view of the inclusion of funding in the estimates of Galway County Council for the examination of securing a new site for a fire station to serve the south Connemara area, his Department has received an application or notification from Galway County Council; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11891/14]

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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The provision of a fire service in its functional area, including the establishment and maintenance of a fire brigade, the assessment of fire cover needs, the provision of premises and the making of other such provisions as it considers necessary or desirable, is a statutory function of individual fire authorities under the provisions of the Fire Services Acts 1981 and 2003. My Department supports fire authorities through the recoupment, within the overall funding available, of costs incurred by fire authorities in relation to the approved purchase of fire appliances as well as construction and upgrading of fire stations.

In 2010, the Galway City and Western Environs Fire Review Group was established to consider the fire cover in Galway City and Western Environs (South Connemara), as well as the West Connemara Area. The Group finalised its review in June 2013 . Having considered three years of fire incident data, potential changes in demographics and potential permutations of fire stations throughout the whole of the Western Environs Area, the Group reported that there is not a conclusive case for an additional fire station in the Area. The Group recommended a series of Community Safety measures further to reduce the incidence of certain categories of fires which feature in the current low fire risk identified in the Area. I understand that it has reported accordingly to both City and County Councils.

Under Section 26 of the Fire Services Act 1981, decision-making on the organisation of fire services and fire stations is a reserved function of fire authorities and I therefore have no function in such decisions, nor has an application for capital funding assistance been received by my Department for a new fire station in South Connemara.