I pay tribute to all of the workers in local authorities and emergency services for everything they have done. On Friday last, the banks of the Mayne river burst causing absolute devastation for residents living in apartments on Marrsfield Avenue, Clongriffin. Residents were left without electricity and the lifts were put out of action, leaving a disabled person who uses a wheelchair effectively cut off from the rest of the community. The flooding of an underground car park left several cars completely destroyed. This has had a devastating impact on livelihoods, including those of a number of people who drive professionally for a living, including taxi drivers. People in these apartments are paying €2,000 a month in rent for one-bed apartments. They simply cannot afford to lose their income or livelihoods. The emergency response payment must be made available to the residents of these Marrsfield Avenue apartments. Are the residents of these apartments able to apply for this emergency payment?

Sentiment score: -0.23

I thank the Minister of State for that confirmation. It is very useful because there was no clarity on that. I appreciate that confirmation. These apartments were built right next to the Mayne river. Má chaithfimid súil siar, if we look back, there is a long history of flooding associated with that river. In June 1993, homes in Balgriffin, very close to the apartments that were just flooded, were badly flooded resulting in residents having to leave their home for two months. More than 30 years ago, in 1993, a resident affected by these floods said "The Water Table level in the area is extremely high, the ground having already absorbed as much water as it can." Downstream, at the Baldoyle Estuary, homes were badly flooded on 1 February 2002, when the banks of the Mayne river burst. When homes were flooded in 1993 and 2002, this was a rural community on the edge of Dublin city and there were very few homes in the area. Since then, thousands of homes have been built in the area. In recognition of the flood risk posed, there are no buildings directly adjacent to the Mayne river at several locations. The decision made by Dublin City Council many years ago to grant planning permission for apartments with an underground car park right next to a river with a history of flooding was grossly irresponsible. The flood map for the area shows that lands close by are prone to flooding. The maps for the land the apartments were built on do not show the same flood risk. I assume this is because the land is slightly higher. However, the apartments were built on a narrow strip of land right next to a river with a history of bursting its banks, right next to lands that flood and right next to homes that had previously flooded in an area where a flood relief scheme is needed but has never been delivered. Excavating and digging down to put in an underground car park at this location could only ever lead to one outcome. The result has been devastating for residents who have their livelihoods destroyed. In 2028, the Minister of State announced that there would be a flood risk management plan for the Liffey and Dublin Bay river basin. This included the assessment of a number of areas, including Balgriffin. In 2020, when asked about the flood risk assessment for the Balgriffin area, the then Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Michael McGrath, stated in a written reply: "It is understood that housing development in the area has likely altered the hydraulic conditions on site and/or resolved the flooding issue identified in FEM FRAMS." He went on to say that this was to be reviewed. Six years later, we are still waiting on the OPW to produce revised flood maps for the area. The serious flooding of the apartments at Marrsfield shows, unfortunately, that the OPW got this completely wrong when it said it appeared the flooding issue had been resolved in the area. In a written response issued to me today by the senior Minister about the flooding at Marrsfield in Clongriffin, he and the OPW do not even know who the relevant local authority is. They get this basic fact completely wrong. The suggestion from the senior Minister that Fingal County Council should apply for funding to carry out flood protection works for apartments in the jurisdiction of Dublin City Council, where Fingal County Council has no legal authority or responsibility, shows that the OPW and the senior Minister, in issuing this reply, are not in command of even the most basic facts and pieces of information. It is abundantly clear that there needs to be emergency flood relief works to protect these residents and a proper flood relief scheme to address the flood events that have taken place in the area over many decades. This must include protecting the apartments. Is mian liom a rá go bhfuil an méid a tharla uafásach. Is drochscéal é. Tá sé uafásach ar fad. Níor cuireadh tús ach le 10 scéim as 150 - ten schemes out of 150. There is a need, as others have said, to progress these much faster and with urgency. Residents need timelines. Cad atá á dhéanamh ag an Aire Stáit chun é seo a shocrú? Níl aon fhógra. Ní foláir dúinn gníomhú anois. Caithfidh muid gníomhú go práinneach. Níl aon rogha eile ann. Ní foláir don Aire Stáit agus don Rialtas araon éisteacht agus gníomhú. I urge the Minister of State to address these issues.

Sentiment score: -0.04