'Some 100 schemes' under way to tackle flooding, Dáil told
Speaking during Dáil Statements on Flood Relief, Minister of State at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform Kevin 'Boxer' Moran said that the OPW had identified communities at risk by undertaking the largest ever programme of its kind in 2018.
That research concluded that the vast majority of those communities could be protected, if an "ambitious", "robust approach" which "met regulatory requirements" was undertaken.
There are "some 100" schemes under way, with projects either completed or being carried out to protect "80% of at-risk properties".
"To date, the OPW has €570 million in 55 flood relief schemes protecting 13,500 properties with an estimated economic benefit" of €2 billion, the minister said.
Sinn Féin TD Mairéad Farrell acknowledged the significant increase in OPW funding to address this matter, but said that this was never "predominantly a financial issue".
She accepted that flood relief schemes "are complex and multi-annual projects", and do require local input.
However she warned: "It does take far too long to go from the initial stages to completion at the moment."
Labour TD Ged Nash asked why delivering a flood relief scheme, which has five stages, can get stuck on the first stage, citing examples from his constituency in Co Louth.
Independent Ireland leader Michael Collins said that "rivers need to be cleaned out", and called on the minister to ensure that this happens, but reassured that he was not "having a go" at the minister who he said is "a hard-working man".
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Independent
14 minutes ago
- Irish Independent
Canadian state wholesaler wants Irish whiskey to replace US spirits in 25,000 outlets, agriculture minister says
Canadian state wholesaler wants Irish whiskey to replace US spirits in 25,000 outlets, agriculture minister says Martin Heydon exploring potential deal in massive boost to the sector Martin Heydon has spoken to the Liquor Control Board of Ontario. Photo: Frank McGrath Fearghal O'Connor Today at 06:30 Ireland's embattled whiskey sector could fill the gap left on Canadian liquor shelves following the removal of US drinks products in reaction to Donald Trump's tariffs against America's northern neighbour, a key government-owned alcohol distributor has told the Irish Government.
Irish Times
a day ago
- Irish Times
Ireland has too many quangos and too many lawyers feeding off its clientelist politics
If government is the group of people who run a state and the formal rules and institutions by which they do so, governance is how they go about that through networks, processes, interests, ideologies and political actors at different levels. The Republic of Ireland has a well-defined and clearly identifiable government structure, formally accountable through elections and the Oireachtas and amply covered by media . In contrast its governance is much more opaque, less visible to its citizens and its media coverage is patchy and uneven. This matters because the Republic currently suffers from a series of problems – in housing, energy, water, climate, health and care infrastructure and in its economic model – that arise from suboptimal governance just as much as from short-sighted or incompetent governments. These problems are often made more visible by comparisons with similar states in Europe and elsewhere. This State is one of the most centralised in Europe , whether defined by the functional and geographical concentration of executive and political power in Dublin or the comparatively puny powers of both parliamentary and local government. Such centralisation puts an onus on political leaders and executive managers to get things right through coherent, integrated policymaking. READ MORE The abiding localism of Irish life is channelled to the capital by networks of TDs, private lobbying and clientelism that dominate the distribution of resources. That perfectly matches the retail, consumerist and reactive side of everyday Irish politics – and provides much of the media agenda. Less often discussed are the resulting poor outcomes across a range of public services because more local and regional structures of governance are unavailable to policymakers. [ Fintan O'Toole: The three pillars of Ireland's political system are crumbling Opens in new window ] Instead policymaking is often outsourced to quangos (quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisations). An OECD report identified 800 of them and said they clog up Irish governance and inhibit local government . Notorious examples of poor practice and opaque structures in health and educational bodies provide daily headline news. If we are over-quangoed we are also over-lawyered in planning and insurance per head of comparable European populations. These issues show up plainly in how Irish governments responded to the growing population over the past decade during the economic recovery and expansion after the financial crisis. Immigration of skilled labour through work permits has increased the population by 16 per cent, or more if refugees are also factored in. Imperatives of economic growth drove the expansion; but it was not accompanied by plans to increase housing and infrastructure to provide for a growing and more complex society demanding greater public services. Instead market forces prevailed, but they failed to meet that demand. [ Chronic inability to build anything big in the State is baked into the system Opens in new window ] These widening gaps were identified by some analysts and commentators, and they then became part of the political and election agenda. But they have dominated public debate only since being put there squarely by big economic players and international organisations over the past year. Infrastructure deficits inhibit new investments, they say – and that coincides with wider concerns about how vulnerable the Irish economic model has become to international shocks, particularly from Donald Trump. Hence the level of interest in the National Development Plan and its methodology. Rather than base it on an analysis of changing demographics, economic trends and social needs which generate development priorities, its method is more ad hoc in response to the uncertain international backdrop. Detailed project plans await definition, as the scale of the Trump tariff shock is assessed. In the meantime, different Government departments are allocated capital expenditure envelopes based on their bargaining power. How will the updated National Development Plan shape Ireland in years to come? Listen | 35:59 It's a far cry from the strategic foresight approach to governing increasingly advocated by analysts, companies, the EU and international organisations. That involves gathering information about relevant trends and potentially disruptive risks, developing scenarios about plausible futures and integrating such insights into anticipatory planning. The OECD has advocated such an approach for Ireland and there are several initiatives in government and academia to apply them. Had they been deployed over the past decade we could have been better prepared to tackle these development gaps – not to mention linking them to the equally plausible prospect of a united Ireland. Notwithstanding the highly centralised nature of Irish government, it has lacked the capacity to aggregate governance coherently and to resist particular interests. The consequences of changing demographics and economic growth should have been more effectively foreseen, but were not. For that politicians and executive managers should share the blame. [ Tariff 'uncertainties' could 'weigh heavily' on Irish economic growth Opens in new window ] The problems are exacerbated by the narrow base of Irish taxation, in which 10 US corporations provide 40 per cent of corporate tax revenue, along with the glaring six-fold contrast between the multinational sector's high productivity and that of indigenous industry. Tackling these problems requires structural change in the Republic's governance to decentralise and redemocratise power, by prioritising and co-ordinating development gaps more effectively with better analysis. That would help repair the seriously widening distributional and political gaps between older and younger generations.
Irish Independent
a day ago
- Irish Independent
The Irish Independent's View: Prudence, rather than largesse, makes most economic sense for Ireland right now
As August begins, we have already seen so many budgetary kites take flight to tell us the making of the next year's budget starts earlier each year. Right now, Ireland is a rich nation and its people have expectations that accord with that. But in a Trumpian discordant world, that situation could change rapidly, as we found to our cost in 2008 when we entered what former finance minister Michael Noonan later called 'a lost decade'. Ireland's small, open economic model leaves us susceptible to swift boom-and-bust switches. In early October, we will learn the 2026 financial plans of 'Mr Prudence' himself, Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe. Many of us believe we deserve more goodies, but this is more a time for caution. If tough global economic times hit soon, we will be in a better position than we were in 2008, but the atypical budget surplus, which contrasts with our European neighbours, can only cushion so much. Ireland cannot be an economic outlier forever. We are reminded that the days of the early 2000s, when taoiseach Bertie Ahern declaimed that the 'boom just got boomier', presaged tough economic times. The impact of Donald Trump's tariffs may diminish the resources available for such largesse Mr Donohoe and his colleagues insist that one-off budget payments, like electricity bill grants, are not going to happen next year, but closer analysis suggests the Government's dilemma is that voters will notice the difference if they do not happen again. This is particularly true for households with children, who benefited from two double welfare payments. For a single worker on €50,000 last year, the budget measures delivered about €860 extra per year. When you add the two energy credits amounting to €250, you find it was a nice bonus that will be missed. The impact of Donald Trump's tariffs may diminish the resources available for such largesse, which should at all events be targeted, rather than blanket, measures. It may also provide some political cover for a more prudent approach to public spending. Last month's Summer Economic Statement indicated that there would be scope for a tax package of about €1.5bn, but a substantial part of that would be taken up by the pledged hospitality Vat rate cut to 9pc. Put this alongside keeping the lower Vat rate on household energy bills and you are suddenly over €1bn for a full year. Yet voters want income tax cuts, which are key to politicians' re-election, assuming there is available cash. Then there is the demand for welfare increases averaging €12 a week last year. All things considered, the Budget 2026 will prove more challenging than in the years of austerity when cutbacks virtually wrote themselves.
