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Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 21 Jun 2017

Vol. 955 No. 1

Topical Issue Debate

Rent Controls

This Government is a competitive one. There are many competing crises under the Government's remit at present but, unfortunately, one crisis is the clear winner - the housing crisis. This is a humanitarian crisis that has been building for many years and it still worsens today.

I attend Trim district courthouse regularly. It is chock-a-block with families in mortgage distress where banks are seeking to repossess their homes. It is shocking that there is a property rent and price bubble in full swing in Meath at present while the collateral damage of the last Fianna Fáil property crash is still weaving its way through the courts. Hundreds of families in Meath are living with friends and family. Dozens more are in emergency accommodation. I am aware of people in Meath who have had to stay in tents, churches and Garda station cells so they could bridge the gaps between homes. Currently, there are 3,800 people on the housing waiting list in Meath, despite the fact that there are 2,500 vacant or derelict buildings in the county.

Rents in the county have spiralled over the last number of years, increasing by 50% in the last four years. They increased by 15.8% last year and in the year to date they have increased by 16.7%. They are spiralling out of control. Indeed, they are increasing at a faster rate than in any other county in the State. I wholeheartedly support the right of a landlord to charge a fair price for a decent house. Indeed, it is a key component of the housing provision system in this country. However, the rents we are discussing now are in the realm of super profits. These are not the rents that are necessary to cover mortgages or to ensure that the landlord can provide a house and maintain its contents in a decent fashion. Supernormal profits are being made.

The average rent in Meath at present is €1,050 for a house. That makes renting a house unaffordable for many people on low incomes. Perhaps the Minister of State will put himself in the shoes of a person working 40 hours per week and earning the minimum wage. If that person is required to provide accommodation for their family and rent an average house in the county, they will spend 65% of their income on the rental of that property. That is their income before it is taxed. They are expected to spend the 35% that is left after paying the landlord on feeding their family and on providing electricity, warmth, clothing, education and health care for their family.

The key point here, which is something that has been missed by the Government so far, is that the point at which rental accommodation becomes unaffordable is the point where homelessness begins. That is the reason our party, since this crisis has manifested itself, has pleaded with the Government to link rent increases to the consumer price index. At present, rent pressure zones have been designated in only a small part of this country. Places such as Meath West are left outside of those zones. I ask the Minister to ensure that towns in the commuter belt are considered part of the rent pressure zones.

First, I beg the indulgence of the House as I have not read a script in 15 years, so if I get lost I will try to correct myself.

The way in which an area is designated as a rent pressure zone is set out in the Planning and Development (Housing) and Residential Tenancies Act 2016. The 2016 Act amends the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 to provide that the Housing Agency, in consultation with local authorities, may make a proposal to the Minister that an area should be considered for designation as a rent pressure zone. On receipt of such a proposal, the Act provides that the Minister must then request the director of the Residential Tenancies Board, RTB, to conduct an assessment of the area to establish whether it meets the necessary criteria for designation and to report to the Minister on whether the area should be designated as a rent pressure zone. Where the Residential Tenancies Board confirms that an area satisfies the criteria for the area to be designated, the Minister then has a statutory obligation to make an order designating that area as a rent pressure zone.

An area cannot be designated as a rent pressure zone unless it meets the criteria set out in the legislation. These criteria are that the annual rate of rent inflation in the area was 7% or more in four of the last six quarters and that the average rent for the area in the last quarter was above the average national rent in the RTB’s rent index report in the last quarter, which is €987 per month for the first quarter of 2017.

On 15 June 2017, the RTB published the rent index report relating to the first quarter of 2017, which includes a summary of the data used as the criteria for designating rent pressure zones in respect of local electoral areas in the country. This allows all interested parties to see where their area stands with regard to rents and possible designation. The data from the rent index report relating to KelIs, Navan and Trim is included in the report and indicates that the annual rate of rent inflation in Trim and Navan was 7% or more in at least four of the last six quarters, while for Kells the report shows that there was growth of 7% or more in three of the last six quarters. In all cases, however, the average rent for these areas was not above the RTB average national rent for the last quarter. Therefore, these areas do not meet the criteria for designation at this time.

Under the Act, the Minister has no further role or discretion in proposing areas for designation as rent pressure zones or in deciding whether they should be so designated. The designation process is independent and based on clear objective criteria and quantifiable evidence. The Housing Agency will continue to monitor the rental market and may recommend further areas for designation. Where, following the procedures set out in the Act, it is found at a future date that additional areas meet the criteria, they will be designated as rent pressure zones.

A review of the rent predictability measure and the system of rent pressure zones is currently under way.

The provisions have been in place for six months and data from the Residential Tenancies Board's rent index report for the first quarter of 2017 are now available. This is the first rent index covering the period since the rent pressure zone measure was introduced. Using these data, it will be possible to ascertain the effectiveness of the rent predictability measure and whether any changes need to be made - for example, to the qualifying criteria or the designation process. As part of the review, a public consultation process on the effectiveness of the rent predictability measure and the rent pressure zones was launched on 15 June 2017 and will remain open until 30 June. Further details on the consultation are available on the Department's website.

It is shocking to me to learn that the towns we have just discussed meet the criteria with regard to spiralling rent. The Minister of State says they do not meet the full criteria, however, because the rent in question is not already an outlier, as in being too high. In other words, the Government's mechanism is to wait until rent gets too high and then slow down the increase to 4%. It does not put the brake on it or stop it but it waits until it gets too high and then decides, perhaps, to slow it down somewhat.

I have mentioned the thousands of people who are already in massive crisis with regard to housing. There are thousands of other people living in houses today who are living in fear that their landlord will either increase the rent or decide to move them out of their home, thereby leaving them at the mercy of the market. That is exactly where the Government is leaving them. It is saying to them there are no brakes that it will apply to the rents in the towns of Navan, Kells, Athboy, Trim, Oldcastle and Enfield. It is extremely frustrating. Meath West constituency is the home of the Minister of State with responsibility for housing, Deputy Damien English. We would have believed there would have been some leverage there with regard to making the changes. It is also the home of the Fianna Fáil Deputy, Shane Cassells, who abstained from voting on the legislation and, therefore, allowed for these Meath West towns to be excluded.

The point the Minister of State made was that the Minister is prevented from participating. He is not. He has a mandate from the people to fix this problem. He is not stopped by legislation because he can make sure it is changed. If the Minister decides to change it, he will have willing helpers on the Sinn Féin benches to make sure the rent is linked to the consumer price index or the rate of inflation, and make sure that normal families can go to sleep easily in the knowledge that next year's rent will also be affordable.

With regard to my area, the Deputy gave a very interesting statistic. He referred to there being 2,800 vacant buildings in County Meath. While I am in this position, it is my intention to consider how we can get those vacant properties back into the housing market. I have a particular, designated role in that regard.

The Deputy referred to legislation. It is clear. The Minister must act if the criteria are met. The Deputy is doing his job as a Deputy for Meath West but the criteria are not met. It is a bit rich, in a way, for any Deputy to say a Minister of State - Deputy Cassells was mentioned also - should be in some position to manipulate the legislation. It is quite clear that the criteria have not been met. The legislation can be amended and I agree with the Deputy in that regard. I indicated in my response that a full review was happening. It is only six months since this was introduced. It is not a universally recognised fact that rent controls work everywhere in the world. It is appropriate that after six months we would review the arrangement. As the Deputy clearly put to the House, there is a case for an extension to his area but we need to determine how the measure is working overall. After six months, it is appropriate to have the review. Certainly, the Deputy's representations arguing for an extension to other areas will be considered as part of the review of the legislation in this area.

Hospital Services

I offer my sincere and heartfelt condolences to the family of Thomas Power, including his wife Bernie, his parents, his sister and extended family. As we know, Tom was buried this morning. His death was very untimely. As the Minister, Deputy Harris, is well aware, considering that we have raised this several times in the House, cardiac services in University Hospital Waterford are time sensitive. The cath lab opens from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday to Friday. It is, therefore, open for eight hours per day and closed for 16 hours per day. It is closed all day on Saturday and Sunday. It is simply not acceptable that time restrictions play such a role in the day-to-day lives of our people. Cardiology intervention at University Hospital Waterford is time sensitive so if any patient presents requiring cardiac intervention outside the opening hours, his or her only option is an ambulance to Cork.

Last Sunday, Mr. Thomas Power, 39, recently married and expecting his first baby, presented at University Hospital Waterford with chest pains. A decision was taken that he should be transferred to Cork University Hospital. He died in Dungarvan, 30 minutes up the road. As I said, he was laid to rest this morning. The death has come as a huge shock to those of us living in Waterford and the south east. Unfortunately, it has not come as a surprise. Those of us campaigning for the second cath lab and for 24-7 cardiac care have warned for years of the dangers of transporting patients by ambulance for treatment. Dr. Patrick Owens, consultant cardiologist, has warned time and again that this would happen. It has happened. It is one death too many and it can never be allowed to happen again.

The Herity report has underestimated the impact of not having 24-7 cardiac care. It has underestimated the single-point-of-failure situation that we saw at the weekend. It has underestimated the commute time between University Hospital Waterford and Cork University Hospital. How can the Minister continue to stand over the Herity report?

The people in Waterford and the south east are angry and afraid. They are angry because of what happened to Thomas Power, who presented to the accident and emergency ward in University Hospital Waterford on Sunday with chest pains. He was suffering from cardiac complications. The cardiac unit, the emergency PPCI service, in the hospital was closed at the time. It closes at 5.30 p.m. from Monday to Friday and it is closed for the weekend. Rather than being admitted into the ward and treated by cardiologists, Mr. Power was put into an ambulance, in which he died 30 minutes outside Waterford.

A number of months ago, a number of regional clinicians and consultants met in Buswells Hotel in Dublin and robustly challenged Dr. Herity's findings. They said at the time that a decision not to enhance cardiology services in Waterford would cost lives. I spoke to those consultants today and they are livid. They are livid with the Department and HSE and they are also angry with the Minister. They and I accept that medical services should be provided on the basis of clinical and medical need but there is no justification whatsoever for people in a region with a population of 500,000 not to have access to emergency cardiac services out of hours from Monday to Friday and over weekends. Worse still, Dr. Herity recommended that all emergency services at the hospital cease. How is that report justified, therefore? How could it be stood over? We need a new review. Everything in the review is irrelevant unless it is based on the population of the south east. I sympathise with the family, to whom I have spoken personally. We have a job of work to do. I commend the Minister of State, Deputy Halligan, and Deputy Butler and all the regional politicians who work together on this. If there is a new review, will it be based on the population of the region?

I too offer my condolences to the family of Tom Power. I believe that if he had taken ill on a Friday morning instead of a Sunday, he would have received cardiac intervention at University Hospital Waterford, which is about ten minutes from his home.

The Minister for Health and I have differed on the Herity report on a number of occasions. I respect that. He knows my firmly held views that the calculations of the population were flawed and that it was incomplete on the basis that the experienced concerns and service needs of the consultants in south Tipperary and Wexford were not sought, despite the fact that there was a comprehensive input from the consultants in Cork. Crucially, in the context of the death of Mr. Tom Power, the review did not address life and death clinical risk and safety concerns. Pre-dating the Herity review, the HSE itself identified the lack of the second cath lab at UHW as being an extreme clinical risk under the HSE risk register. That status was downgraded by an unknown person in the HSE prior to Dr. Herity commencing his review. After the publication of the Herity report, further suggestions of interference in the review process emerged. I believe that Dr. Herity was given flawed and biased information prior to commencing his work. A briefing note prepared by unit 3 of the Department of Health explicitly stated that the second cath lab was not a priority. It is my belief that the interference has continued.

I commend the Minister on the work that he is trying to do at present by formally approving the deployment of a mobile cath lab on 8 May. However, it was not until 12 June - five weeks later - that the Department of Health formally instructed the HSE to proceed to tender and notify the management of UHW. For five weeks, I believe that a ministerial order was completely ignored. For five weeks, the Minister's express instructions were treated with utter contempt by civil servants. This is not fair to the Minister. I believe that the HSE is a law unto itself and that unknown person or persons within the HSE are determined to put every obstacle possible in front of the expansion of the cardiac services in UHW. I believe there is an agenda playing out that the extension of services at UHW has nothing to do with the clinical need.

Go raibh maith agat.

The presence of the mobile cath lab would not have saved the life of Tom Power. However, there will be more Tom Powers and more lives needlessly lost unless cardiac services in UHW are expanded. This will never happen while we, the elected-----

The time has expired.

----representatives of the region, are fighting against an invisible force within the health service.

I begin by expressing my deepest sympathy to the Power family, to Thomas Power's wife and to her family, the Delaney family of Murrintown, County Wexford. Mr. Power's death is a devastating loss to his family.

The death of Thomas Power is a heart-rending reminder of the desperate need for 24-7 cardiac services in the south-eastern region. More than half a million people live in the south east. The existing cath lab is the only one that operates on a part-time basis. It is difficult to see how this is justifiable. How can it be that when patients reach the largest hospital in the south-eastern region, a university hospital, they cannot be given the basic services that are necessary to keep them alive? How can anyone stand over the fact that someone with chest pains who present him or herself at UHW before 5 p.m. on Friday is treated any differently to someone who presents after 5 p.m. or at the weekend? Why are those people made to risk their lives by having to travel to Cork?

Take my own county of Wexford for example. The popular village of Fethard-on-Sea down in New Ross is 180 km from Cork University Hospital. That is almost three hours of travel time. How could anyone be expected to survive such a distance? There have long been warnings of the risks of not having 24-7 cardiac services in Waterford. These risks are posed by outsourcing cardiac patients down to Cork city. It is simply indefensible. The people of the south east are being treated as second-class citizens. It is difficult to see how anyone can stand over a region of half a million people not having access to 24-7 services.

I appreciate the Minister realising the Herity report, but that report ignores the real consequences of restricted cardiac services for the south east. How can the State guarantee patient safety when critically ill patients present themselves at a hospital and are then expected to travel to a second hospital 130 km away? It is not rational, acceptable or right. A second review needs to be carried out on this situation.

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Halligan, Deputies Butler, Browne, Cullinane, my colleague from the region, the Minister of State, Deputy John Paul Phelan, and from the other House, Senator Coffey, who have all raised this important issue of cardiology services at UHW. I too was very saddened to hear of the tragic death of a young man, Mr. Power, who was being transferred between two hospitals at the weekend. I offer my sincere condolences to his family. I think it is important that we are sensitive to their needs at this time. As Minister for Health, however, I cannot comment on individual cases and so will address the House on the wider cardiology service issue, except to say that I expect all the proper procedures will take place with regard to the circumstances of this tragic death. I believe that is important.

Last year, in line with a commitment in the Programme for a Partnership Government, an independent review of the need for a second cath lab at UHW was undertaken by Dr. Niall Herity, a world-renowned cardiology expert. The review concluded that the needs of the effective catchment population of UHW could be accommodated from a single cath lab. However, the review also recommended increased investment to enhance cardiology services at the hospital and to provide an additional eight hours cath lab activity per week to address waiting times and provide improved access for patients.

At the time of the publication of the report, I committed to providing those additional resources to the hospital. I did so. The HSE national service plan 2017 subsequently identified the implementation of the recommendations of the Herity report as a priority and additional funding of €500,000 was provided for the hospital. I should also mention, as the Minister of State, Deputy Halligan, alluded to, that the HSE issued a tender this week for a mobile cath lab that will contribute on an interim basis to a further reduction in elective cardiology waiting lists in UHW.

I also committed to a further review to assess the impact that these improvements have had on the volume of patients attending the cath lab and this review will take place at the end of the deployment of the mobile lab. I commit to keeping Oireachtas colleagues from Waterford and the region briefed on plans for that review.

With regard to emergency work at the hospital, I want to stress again that all decisions on how we configure our health services must be evidence-based. I think everybody accepts that and I appreciate that. Dr. Herity recommended that emergency work should cease in order to allow the hospital to focus on the much larger volume of planned work and to contribute to improved patient outcomes. That was the finding of the independent review. I believe it is fair to say that the organisation of primary PCI services is an issue for the whole country. It relates to how we provide services to our whole population taking account of the best evidence available. While we are discussing Waterford and the south east today, it is indeed an issue beyond just the south east. I would point out that patients in Monaghan are transferred to Dublin for primary PCI and patients in parts of Kerry go to CUH. Highly specialised services such as primary PCI need to be carried out in a small number of hospitals around the country where the volume of patients supports the provision of a safe service. Low-volume services do not facilitate the ongoing and sustainable achievement of the patient outcomes required. That has been the long-held clinical view. Based upon this country’s population, we can only operate a limited number of primary PCI centres in order to ensure that services achieve required standards and are sustainable. Clinical staff cannot maintain their skills where volumes are insufficient and staff will not be attracted to work in units that do not facilitate them producing the outcomes expected.

I believe it is time for a full national review of primary PCI services. Therefore, I have now asked my Department to make arrangements for this national review to be undertaken based upon independent clinical expertise and this will obviously include the south east of the country. This review will seek to ensure that as many patients as possible have access on a 24-7 basis to safe and sustainable emergency interventions following a heart attack. The review will therefore address the wider implications for all services and all parts of the country of Dr. Herity’s view regarding primary PCI services and will come up with a plan for the achievement of the best patient outcomes possible. Clinical safety is paramount as part of that review.

I want to repeat that extra investment is being provided to allow additional activity at the existing cath lab. The mobile cath lab is confirmed for Waterford and is on the way. There will be a further review of UHW's situation following the deployment of this mobile Iab. I will consult with Waterford Oireachtas Members at that stage with regard to that review. In addition to that, there will be a national review recognising the importance of access to PPCI services for all our citizens.

I thank the Minister for his answer. I welcome the fact that he has said that it is time for a full national review of primary PCI. Unfortunately, since five o'clock this evening, the cath lab is closed in Waterford while we are here discussing it. If another Thomas Power presents, we are still going to have the same issue. I ask that there would be no interference from the HSE with regard to the terms of reference for this report. Clearly, as the Minister of State, Deputy Halligan, pointed out, there was interference the last time. We all saw copies of the letter and the dictat issued. That cannot happen again.

With regard to the extra investment, the Herity report was published in September 2016. I spoke to management in the hospital before I came here. Not one extra hour has been put in place. The hospital is only advertising for staff now. Those extra eight hours would be very important but they need to be in place as soon as possible. The only solution is a second catheterisation laboratory and I will be sticking to my guns on that.

I am sure officials in the Department wrote the Minister's script. His response worries me because he is saying that highly specialised services such as primary percutaneous coronary intervention, PPCI, need to be carried out in a small number of hospitals. He said that low-volume services do not facilitate the ongoing and sustainable achievement of the patient outcomes required and that based upon this country's population, we can only operate a limited number of primary PCI centres. We are being teed up again for a report that will again tell us the same thing. That is what I am reading from this because I have seen the documentation. I received it under a freedom of information request. The HSE, the Department, the acute coronary syndrome programme and the South-South West hospital group were all saying the same thing, which is that the population of Waterford and its environs does not justify emergency PPCI. Unless the Minister accepts that this is regional and unless the terms of reference are very clear that this is about the south east and the population of the south east, which is what was in the Higgins report where a clear commitment was given that enhanced cardiology services and interventional cardiology for all 500,000 patients in the south east would be provided at University Hospital Waterford, it will be a tee up by officials in the Department and the HSE. We have been sold pup after pup on this issue and enough is enough. While the Minister says he will consult, unless he agrees today on the regional nature of this issue, it will go nowhere and we will continue to be sold down the river time and again.

Members of the Independent Alliance and I had a meeting with the Minister today. Outside of the national review, there is a commitment to a review in the south east, which will cover all of the south east. The last review did not cover all of the south east. I take into consideration what Deputy Cullinane is saying but I ask Members from the south east to meet with the Minister and me as we sit down to decide the terms of reference for this review. For the first time ever, Members of the Oireachtas from the south east will have a say in how this review will be conducted. I am convinced that if the regions that were not taken into consideration in the first review - the consultants in Wexford, Tipperary and so on - and the catchment area whose inclusion we will have a say about are included, the catchment area alone will carry the review over the line, which did not happen the last time. I had a fruitful meeting with the Minister. We do not always get on and we have our differences but I think there has been a change. Let us get Members of the Oireachtas from the south east and the Minister together and see whether we can push this review over the line.

We know about one death because it occurred on the road to Cork but how many people have made it to Cork only to die subsequently because it took them too long to get there and how many people have suffered additional heart damage as a result of a delayed arrival in Cork? The south-east region needs 24-7 cardiac care. It has a population of 500,000 people but it also has large populations in geographically isolated areas. I mentioned Fethard-on-Sea in County Wexford. Other areas include Ramsgrange, Kilmore Quay and Our Lady's Island. They are highly populated areas with high numbers of tourists yet they are up to three hours away from Cork. It is simply not acceptable to say to those people in the south of Wexford, Waterford, Carlow and Kilkenny that they must travel to Cork to get services to which everybody else in the country has access. A region with 500,000 people should have 24-7 cardiac services in its top hospital.

I respectfully say to Deputy Browne that he is wrong in suggesting that everybody else in every other part of the country has access to this on their doorstep. That is not the case. I referenced two examples - Monaghan where people must travel to Dublin and parts of Kerry where people have to travel to Cork. There are a number of places in this country that are outside the 90 minutes and that is why-----

Not an entire region.

Well people are people and citizens are citizens. We need to ensure that every citizen in this country can access services. I am not making a partisan point but Deputy Cullinane made a number of what I view as potential slurs on officials in my Department and the HSE. I stand over their integrity as hard-working public servants. The Deputy might know-----

No slur was made against anyone. The Minister of State, Deputy Halligan, made far stronger allegations against the Minister's officials.

My officials do their job to the best of their ability in accordance with all good practice in the public service. It is the same position as that held by officials in Northern Ireland. If Deputy Cullinane asks the leader of Sinn Féin in Northern Ireland, who was a good colleague and counterpart of mine as Minister of Health, he will discover that the same procedure applies in respect of primary PCI in Northern Ireland. I would not like it to be interpreted as a view in the Department or the HSE. This is a long-established view on the island of Ireland regarding access to primary PCI.

Leaving that aside, I am committed to doing the four things. The additional investment has been provided. The point made by Deputy Mary Butler is valid. Management now needs to get on with expending that investment and putting those additional hours in place. The mobile catheterisation laboratory is on the way. When both of those things are in place, it makes sense to have a further review to see what the additional impact of the extra hours is in terms of the number of people using the catheterisation laboratory. I think this is logical. At that point, I will engage with Members of the Oireachtas in the south east. I genuinely welcome that engagement.

The fourth thing I am doing is talking about a national review because there are parts of this country where we need to make sure the spread of our primary PCI structure is at an optimum level for all our citizens. I have instructed my Department to commence that national review and will keep in touch with Members of the Oireachtas.

Aquaculture Licences

Tá mé iontach buíoch go bhfuil an cheist seo roghnaithe mar is ábhar iontach tábhachtach é, go háirithe do mo Dháilcheantar féin i dTír Chonaill, ach tá a fhios agam ó a bheith ag caint leis an Teachta Ferris go bhfuil an rud céanna amhlaidh i gContae Chiarraí agus go leor ceantar eile. Countless coastal communities are living in a state of constant dread and unease as their coasts face an uncertain future. I speak, of course, about the imposition of large-scale, poorly planned and in some instances, unsightly aquaculture developments. The prospect of trestles and other cultivation equipment on beaches and scenic locations for proposed oyster farms has created much anxiety in areas where it is felt that should such developments get the go head, much harm would be done to the local marine environment and its lure as a natural amenity with potential consequences for tourism, recreation and the wider local economy.

Communities in my county of Donegal have been left in limbo for months on end while controversial decisions about licence applications for oyster farms are still pending while decisions on appeal have still to be reached for others. Let us take the example of Cruit Strand. A period of public and statutory consultation into the licence application ended last October. I had the honour of addressing locals there at that time. We prepared the submissions. The area is not supportive of the type of large-scale aquaculture planned for that area. The local community is still waiting for a determination. The consultation ended in October yet we are now facing into July. This is in spite of the Department having received over 3,200 individual submissions from the local community regarding the development at Cruit Strand and the neighbouring strand. There is a legitimate question here. When is the community going to get a decision from the Department? Not only has the Department not made a decision, it cannot tell the community when a decision is likely. At scenic points such as Rann na Feirste, Rann na Mónagh, Cionn Caslach and Charraig Fhinn, places where natural beauty has acted as an inspiration for countless literary works, artists and musicians and to which people continue to flock each year, there are real concerns at plans to erect major oyster farms on its foreshore.

At Carrickfinn, permission was granted by the Department for the development of some 99 acres of pristine coast land at Braade Strand and Gaoth Dobhair Bay. If the Minister of State has ever flown into Carrickfinn, he will know all about it. It has been labelled the second best airport landing strip in the world. The local community there is still waiting to hear the outcome of appeals lodged earlier this year. My question to the Minister of State is simple and I speak on behalf of the thousands of people who have lodged applications. I speak for those who are waiting day after day to find out if this Department and the process is going to allow for their pristine strand and bay to be ruined and scarred in this way. Why are these communities, and countless more like them, forced to endure months of uncertainty while the Minister of State and his Department have sat on their hands?

All we have to do is look at the recent report from the independent review group, which was set up by the Department itself. It has criticised the length of time that determinations are taking. It has found that the current public and statutory consultation process is hugely flawed, including the method of informing the public of planned developments. None of what I have said should be taken or interpreted as saying that we are opposed to aquaculture or that aquaculture is a bad thing. No-one is against that in principle. However, people are against developments which are disproportionately large in both size and scale, which are scattered along the coast without any thought to the impact it would have on the local community, and what we in Sinn Féin have continually called for is that these developments only be granted where it is deemed to be sustainable and commensurate with the area and locality in which these activities are to be carried out.

What action is the Minister of State going to take to protect these communities, particularly with regard to the licence applications at Ranafast and at Cruit, and appeals against Carrickfinn. When are communities going to be taken out of limbo and told that these large-scale aquaculture developments will not go ahead on the Minister of State's watch?

An aquaculture licence is required by law for the cultivation of finfish, shellfish and certain marine plants such as seaweed. My Department considers all applications for aquaculture licences in accordance with the provisions of the Fisheries (Amendment) Act 1997, the Foreshore Act 1933 and applicable EU legislation. The process involves consultation with a wide range of scientific and technical advisers as well as various statutory consultees. The legislation also provides for a period of public consultation. In addition, my Department must adhere to a wide range of regulatory requirements and other legislation which impact on the licensing process.

A key component of the aquaculture licensing process is a series of measures designed to address the impact of aquaculture on the environment. This series is known as appropriate assessment, AA. This process arose from a European Court of Justice, ECJ, case against Ireland in 2007. The Court of Justice declared that, by failing to take all the measures necessary to comply with the EU habitats directive in respect of authorisation of aquaculture programmes, Ireland had failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive. The EU habitats and birds directives have resulted in the designation of certain bays by the National Parks and Wildlife Service as special areas of conservation or special protection areas for birds, or both. These are known as NATURA 2000 sites and most aquaculture takes place within them, or adjacent to them. In the negotiations to address the ECJ judgement, the Department agreed a process with the European Commission and the National Parks and Wildlife Service which would govern the State’s processing of aquaculture licence applications. The AA process is managed in the main by the Marine Institute via environmental and scientific contractors commissioned by the Institute to carry out the necessary field work and desk analysis. To date, the Marine Institute has submitted appropriate assessments on 24 bays to my Department.

On the environmental impact assessment and screening process, all aquaculture licence applications must be either accompanied by an environmental impact statement, EIS, which is mandatory in the case of marine finfish cultivation or, in the case of shellfish cultivation, applications must be the subject of a detailed screening process with a view to determining whether an EIS is required. The screening process is managed by a screening group comprised of officials from the Marine Institute, Bord lascaigh Mhara, my Department’s marine engineering division and my Department’s aquaculture and foreshore management division. This group examines in detail the characteristics, location and potential environmental impact of each application. The screening assessment process complies fully with applicable European regulations, requirements and guidance documents. In addition, the ministerial decision arising from the screening process is published on the Department's website.

On statutory and public consultation, the legislation specifically provides for periods of statutory and public consultation in respect of aquaculture licence applications and I can assure the Deputy that all observations received - he mentioned 3,200 in the case of two bays in County Donegal - are considered by the Department. Furthermore, any member of the public who wishes to appeal a ministerial decision may do so by submitting an appeal to the Aquaculture Licences Appeals Board, which is an independent body established by statue. An applicant can also avail of this appeal process.

I have to interrupt the Minister of State. His time has expired, and I have to give an opportunity to speak to Deputy Doherty.

Can the rest of my notes be included in the record?

No, it is not a parliamentary question. We will get copies.

I think copies have been circulated.

The Minister of State mentioned that an EIS is required for finfish and the Department can carry out a screening for shellfish. The Department waived the requirement for an EIS in this application, which 3,200 people in the community expressed concern about. I am not sure if the Minister of State is familiar with the community and I know he is still new to the Department. I am not sure if the Minister, Deputy Michael Creed, before he issued the ministerial direction which waived the requirement for an EIS to be carried out on that large-scale development, ever set foot in that part of our country. If he stood on the bridge on the way to Cruit and looked at where the trestles would go on and on, he would not have put pen to paper. If he stood in Ranafast, in Rann na Mónagh, in Annagry and in Carrickfinn and looked out at the bay at what 99 acres of aquaculture would look like, and then thought about the Wild Atlantic Way, the tourism, the culture and the beauty of that area, he would not have put pen to paper. It has given the inspiration for so many of our literary works, which are studied by our children at school and music which is enjoyed by people not only the length and breadth of this island, but also further afield. That natural environment is where people and artists draw their inspiration from. He would never have put pen to paper to waive this requirement if he had looked at the area.

The Minister's own review has shown that the process is flawed. I and my party, including our local councillors, Ms Marie Therese Gallagher and Mr. John Sheamuis Ó Fearraigh, put together a serious submission to that review. Thankfully, certain parts of it have been upheld. This process is flawed. It is taking too long to make determinations. We want two things. We want the Government to fix the process, to speed up the level of determination and it to ensure that those communities will not be scarred indefinitely as a result of an aquaculture licence which is too large in scale and in nature.

I support many communities and many small entrepreneurs in securing aquaculture licences. I believe that oyster farming is a good thing in size and scale. These applications are way out of the norm and should be refused.

I was going to get to the aquaculture licensing review group in the final part of my opening statement. Some 385 submissions were received. There are 30 recommendations which are being considered. I cannot pre-empt what decision will be made but the Department is currently considering that report. With regard to the Kincasslagh and Gaoth Dobhair bays, I understand the Keadue Strand application has been withdrawn so it is down to 1,700 to do with the Cruit Strand. I cannot answer why the EIS by the Department was not sanctioned but nonetheless, 1,700 submissions are being considered and I expect that is part of the reason for the slowness of the process.

I would also agree, no more than with the An Bord Pleanála appeal for planning, that at some stage we must have a definite horizon set on appeals for everybody's sake.

Some of the 385 submissions on the licensing review group were from the industry, which would say it is too prescriptive. In the previous Dáil, I chaired a sub-committee where one of the areas seen as really having potential was appropriate aquaculture. Given that so many of the bays and inlets being designated under Natura 2000 and the applications relating either to them or adjacent to them, everybody agrees a lot of care is needed.

I would make one final point. It is not indefinite. Every structure, such as trellises, that is put in is removable and much more easily removed than a lot of other big infrastructure developments.

The idea behind the licensing review group's work was to try and make this work more efficiently for everybody, the industry, the developers - if one wants to call them that - and the local communities so that they work in harmony. Consultation at any stage at the earliest possible point in any process is the key to it.

Sitting suspended at 6 p.m. and resumed at 6.40 p.m.
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