Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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226. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the status of the transfer of responsibility for the five ports of regional significance to local authority structures. [48609/17]

Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent)
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National Ports Policy 2013 recommends that the five Ports of Regional Significance, Drogheda, Dún Laoghaire, Galway, New Ross and Wicklow, be transferred to more appropriate local authority-led governance structures. The Harbours Act 2015 provides the necessary primary legislative basis to facilitate the transfers of these ports to relevant local authority control.

To date, two of the five Ports of Regional Significance have successfully transferred to the control of the relevant local authorities. On 30 August 2016, Wicklow Port Company transferred to the control of Wicklow County Council. On that date, the company was dissolved and all of its assets, liabilities and staff transferred to the Council. Subsequently on 2 October 2017, Drogheda Port Company was transferred under a transfer of shareholding model to Louth County Council. On that date ownership of all shares in the share capital of the company vested in Louth County Council.

Work on the transfers of the three remaining port companies (Dún Laoghaire, New Ross, and Galway) is also progressing and I expect these to transfer in the coming months.