Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. I congratulate Deputy O’Donnell on his new role and I wish him the best of luck as the Minister of State with responsibility for the OPW. He has always been willing to come before this House and I am appreciative that he has come in for this Commencement matter.

I raise the issue of the Coast Guard station at Courtown. My own relationship with it goes back approximately a decade when we were trying to identify potential sites. This is one of the old Rocket House stations. Up to two dozen members of the Coast Guard who provide a really valuable service for the coastal communities in north Wexford and, indeed, into south Wicklow. Yet, since coming into the Oireachtas, I have been trying to pursue this matter with the OPW. I have raised Commencement matters about the issue of the new site on a number of occasions and there is a consensus that the existing facilities are not suitable.

Let me give the Minister of State a flavour of what some Ministers and Ministers of State have told me when sitting in that chair. On 24 February 2022, the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, said that six possible sites had by then been identified by the OPW and that the Coast Guard at Courtown was on the building programme priority list. On 23 November 2022, the then Minister, Deputy Harris, was taking Commencement matters and informed me that this was “one of the key priorities for the OPW”. Further, he said that “OPW officials are giving this project every priority possible at this time”.

In the summer of 2023, because there may have been some issue with Wexford County Council, I facilitated a meeting which, involved the Coast Guard. The Minister of State, Deputy Chambers, was in attendance. Wexford County Council said that as far as it is concerned, there is no issue and that it would work with the OPW and anybody else to facilitate this. I corresponded back and forward with the OPW, which said it was now down to five potential sites and it was still considering it. I did not hear much progress, and on 10 October 2023, the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, took a Commencement matter on this issue. She said that new accommodation for the Courtown Coast Guard has been identified as “one of the key priorities” of the OPW in its building programme.

I welcome the Minister of State to his role, but I am somewhat worried that somebody in the OPW will tell him that something it was doing is a key priority for them, given the time it is taking to make any progress. I tried to make contact with OPW, as indeed, have people who are involved with the Coast Guard locally, to see if there is any progress. Sites have been identified and pointed out to the OPW. A local landowner said they would be willing to look at this facility being there. I, therefore, want to ask the Minister of State if he would facilitate a meeting involving me, representatives of the Coast Guard, Wexford County Council, etc., to ensure this much-needed facility will finally get up and running. It is completely unfair to those who operate the Coast Guard that this has continued to run on and on as it has been doing. We are not able to get answers from the OPW. I am losing confidence in the OPW to deliver on this project. Will the Minister of State please indicate that this is a priority for him?