Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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1933. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if her attention has been drawn to the fact that due to constant cuts to Waterways Ireland's budget, there are no funds available to maintain the Royal Canal (details supplied); if her attention has further been drawn to the fact that that if funding is not provided for these works, that all the work undertaken by a group since 1974 will have been in vain; if she will review the question of funding urgently; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1530/18]

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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Waterways Ireland is responsible for the management, maintenance, development and restoration of 1,000 km of the inland navigable waterway system throughout the island, principally for recreational purposes, including the Lower Bann Navigation, the Erne System, the Shannon-Erne Waterway, the Shannon Navigation, the Grand Canal, the Royal Canal and the Barrow Navigation.

Despite the many challenges of reduced resources which have been felt right across all publicly funded bodies, Waterways Ireland has continued to ensure the inland waterways, including the Royal Canal have continued to be developed and maintained.

Waterways Ireland started a programme to make lock gates for the canal restoration in 2015. Seven pairs of lock gates have been completed in 2017 and five sets of gates installed. In 2016 a programme to refurbish jetties commenced using a specially created in-house team and external contractors.

Waterways Ireland is exploring ways too in which its maintenance work can be made more effective and efficient. Additional capital support provided by my Department to Waterways Ireland over the past two years, has facilitated the purchase of four new weed cutting boats and a weed harvester and this has assisted hugely in the maintenance of navigation.

The amount of funding allocated to Waterways Ireland from my Department's Vote in 2018 is €24.106m, an increase of over 5% on the starting allocation in 2017.