Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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475. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the capital funding allocated to Waterways Ireland for 2019; the projected expenditure at year end; the proposed allocation for 2020; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53696/19]

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.

Waterways Ireland is co-funded by my Department and the Department for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland. The current expenditure of the body is funded 85% by my Department and 15% by the Department for Infrastructure which reflects the distribution of the navigable waterways in each jurisdiction. Capital expenditure is funded 100% in the jurisdiction in which the capital works are carried out. In addition to this, development work has been sustained through attracting third part investment from a wide range of sources.

Waterways Ireland's work programmes are critical to providing a safe and high quality recreational environment for the public, whilst also preserving the industrial and environmental heritage of the waterways for future generations, balanced with the objective of increasing recreational activity across all our waterways.

The amount of capital funding allocated to Waterways Ireland from my Department's Vote for 2019 is €4,380,000 - an increase of €800,000 on the 2018 allocation. Waterways Ireland anticipates spending the full allocation by year end and the final outturn of expenditure for 2019 will be published as part of the 2019 Appropriation Account in due course. Full details of the allocations for 2020 will be finalised and published as part of the 2020 Revised Estimates Volume.