I welcome the opportunity to speak on the River Boyne Task Force Bill. I thank Deputy Nash and the Labour Party for bringing it forward. I am sorry I did not speak after Deputy Nash, because I was enthusiastic at that stage. I am now coming after the Minister of State and he has put us on a downer.

Sentiment score: 0.44

It is an important piece of legislation and it deals with one of our greatest national and natural resources, the River Boyne. It relates to the Save the Boyne campaign and the effort to reject the proposal from Dawn Meats to emit waste into the Boyne. That campaign was successful and I was happy, along with Sinn Féin colleagues, to support that effort and to play our part. However, the real credit, as anyone who was a part of it will know, goes to the activists and volunteers in the community, in the Save the Boyne campaign and elsewhere. I know there are others but people will not mind me singling out for special mention Mog Downey and Tommy Martin of the Save the Boyne campaign for their efforts, as well as the local angling clubs and the local community. This was quite unusual. All of us as public representatives deal with controversial planning. I have a number of such cases ongoing at the minute throughout the Meath East constituency, but very rarely are they like this. This was an organic response from the community, but wider than that, in response to the proposal because of the want to protect the environment and the River Boyne, and in recognition of the incredible importance, on so many levels, of the Boyne, as well as an appreciation of it. From a political perspective, not to single anyone out, there was the involvement of the Labour Party, the Social Democrats, the Green Party, Sinn Féin, some Independents and the then Councillor Gillian Toole, a party colleague of the Minister of State. I have to say, I hope she does not oppose this proposal next Wednesday because it is a very positive one. There was also the former Councillor McGinty, who is joining us in the Gallery, and I will make special mention of Slane-based local area representative Peter Whelan, who really put his shoulder behind the wheel and put a big effort in. He deserves a lot of credit and maith sibh ar fad. The campaign was organic; it was wonderful and it continues. Hopefully, it can be a central part of any river task force. The proposal being made in this Bill is not merely an administrative adjustment but a long overdue commitment to one of Ireland's most historic and ecologically vital landscapes. For too long the stewardship of the Boyne catchment has been fragmented, its potential under-realised and its pressures inadequately addressed. This Bill provides a coherent and integrated response that the river and our communities need. I heard what the Minister of State said earlier but I was not joking. There is an opportunity in this to harness what I have just mentioned. The Minister of State said there are bureaucratic and administrative forums already established and yet to be established but that does not change matters in my experience. The Government is going to oppose the Bill which is regrettable and a great pity. I urge the Minister of State and the Minister to look at what is positive in this Bill as well as at what the Government itself is proposing and try to marry the two. They should try to take the best of both. The departmental and official response has no life but there is an opportunity here with this Bill. From a Meath perspective, we are so proud of and connected to the Boyne, Brú na Bóinne, Oldbridge, the Battle of the Boyne site, Bective Abbey, Knowth and Dowth, Trim Castle and so on. There is so much there because it is the nature of rivers that life grows up around them. When I think of the development and the potential of it, as well as the need to protect it, there are so many cross-cutting responsibilities. We can take as an example the Boyne greenway and navigation restoration project. The TII has responsibility for it but there are so many agencies involved in that project that it has almost run aground and may run forever and ever. Meath County Council, Louth County Council and the Heritage Council are all involved but if we had a co-ordinating body like a River Boyne task force, it could just pull all of that together. It makes absolute sense to me. At the heart of Deputy Nash's Bill is the recognition that the Boyne is a single living entity. Its health from source to sea dictates the environmental, economic and social well-being of our entire region. The principle of the task force is that it mirrors that interconnectedness. It combines the roles of environmental guardian, strategic planner and community champion. It will protect habitats and wildlife, proposing policies that embed environmental sustainability and climate resilience into the very fabric of our planning. It will co-ordinate sustainable development, ensuring that progress does not come at the expense of our natural heritage. This dual mandate is important and moves us beyond the false choice between conservation and progress towards a model where they are mutually reinforcing. The task force's power to make concrete recommendations on pollution control and to design vital infrastructure works, from flood defences to public access points, shifts our approach from reactive to proactive. It provides a single accountable engine for improvement. Furthermore, by centralising the water policy functions currently dispersed across various committees and local authorities, it will replace complexity and overlap with clarity and purpose. This will streamline decision making and ensure the Boyne receives the specialised, focused attention it deserves. This proposal is about more than ecology and infrastructure. It is also about people. The functions to promote public interest, access and enjoyment speak to a profound understanding of the river as a public amenity. The Boyne is not just a waterway; it is our national heritage, a source of recreation, wellness and inspiration. By mandating consultation with users, landowners and local organisations, the task force ensures its work is rooted in the lived experience of those who know and love the river best. It fosters a spirit of shared custodianship. Some may question the need for another body, as the Minister of State did, but I would argue that this is not an addition to bureaucracy but a cure for bureaucratic paralysis. The Boyne catchment crosses multiple local authority boundaries. Its challenges, be they water quality, biodiversity loss, flooding or managing tourism, do not respect lines on a map. A lone authority cannot solve them and what has been missing is precisely this, a co-ordinating force with a strategic vision and the authority to drive integrated action. In mandating compliance with both the birds directive and the habitats directive, the Bill firmly anchors our national treasure within its European environmental commitments. It signals that our protection of the Boyne will be diligent, science-led and legally robust. The Bill presents us with a straight choice. We can continue with a piecemeal approach, allowing the pressures on the Boyne to mount, or we can embrace this co-ordinated strategy. The River Boyne task force offers a framework to heal its waters, protect its wildlife, unlock its sustainable potential and guarantee its enjoyment for many generations to come. I urge all Members to support the Bill and to take this decisive step forward towards a thriving future for the River Boyne and all who will depend on it. As I said earlier, we are experienced enough in relation to this. I ask the Government to please take on board what I said earlier. There is an opportunity here. The Government's position is clear. I would like it to withdraw its objections but, failing that, let us find a way forward to harness that tremendous potential and combine what is best in this Bill with what the Government and the Department have proposed. This is an incredibly important issue. The work is there to be done. There is a will and an interest and we should harness that. If we do not do so, it will be a shame on all of us. From an Opposition perspective, we are saying "Here it is; let's go and do it".

Sentiment score: 0.30