Labour’s Farren raises issue of unfair division of maritime infrastructure funding

Inishowen Labour County Councillor Martin Farren has raised the issue of the inequitable division of the Department of Marine’s coastal marine infrastructure funding between the Department’s six harbours and all the other piers and harbours around the coast.

Rob O’Donoghue, TD, Labour Party spokesperson on Fisheries and Marine, recently highlighted the issue in the Dail, at a Question Time attended by Ministers for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon TD and Timmy Dooley TD.

Deputy O’Donoghue said: “Of the total allocation of €27 million, €22.6 million is directed towards six State-owned fishery harbour centres. Only €4.3 million has been allocated for local authority piers and harbours, and that €4.3 million is provided based on a funding rate of just 75%. Local authorities must provide the remaining 25% themselves.”

“That is not the full extent of the imbalance. Before local authorities can even provide funding in this area, they must first pay for the necessary surveys and licensing costs under the MARA regime. Meanwhile, for six fishery harbour centres, the costs associated with the same MARA process are borne by the parent Department.”

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“State-owned harbours receive an overwhelming majority of capital funds, and their regulatory and licensing costs are centrally funded. Local authorities receive a fraction of the allocation. They must co-fund projects at a rate of 25%, and they must front-load survey and MARA licensing costs before eligibility is even considered.”

He added: “That is not parity; that is structural imbalance. In Donegal, for example, Donegal County Council has responsibility for more than 150 small piers and harbours. These facilities may not be designated as fishery harbour centres, but they are the lifeblood of smaller fishing vessels, inshore fleets, aquaculture operators, tourism providers and leisure users. They are economic multipliers in fragile coastal regions.”

Mr O’Donoghue also called on the Department to publish the total number of local authority piers and harbours around the coast so that we can quantify the true scale of the discrepancy and have an informed discussion about equitable distribution of maritime infrastructure funding.