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Demand for Foyle breakwater funds
01.12.09
MOVILLE-based Senator
Cecilia Keaveney has called for a fresh impetus to
kick-start work at Greencastle Harbour.
"Work at Greencastle Harbour breakwater is somewhat
stalled because not all who promised to fund the
works have put their money on the table.
"Put simply, the Council have not yet provided their
co-funding monies for the work done to date. The
Tánaiste did confirm that there are to be talks
between the Council and the Department at official
level. The current impasse needs to be addressed and
not ignored if we are to get the breakwater
finished," said Senator Keaveney.
"When we began the project, there were many
questions to answer. The first was, should it happen
at all? It stood up well to the close financial
examination. |
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"The second issue was
funding. Following intensive negotiations I had with
Minister Eamon O Cuiv, I got an agreement that his
Department would pay half the Council's portion.
Therefore, the Council involvement was lessened to
ease the burden on the local authority. The
departments would, between them, |
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fund 87.5% of the
project and the Council 12.5%."
A call for Donegal County Council to address its
financial obligations in relation to Greencastle
breakwater was a key issue raised at a recent
meeting with Tánaiste, Mary Coughlan, TD, said
Senator Keaveney.
"As €6 million has been spent, our meeting between
the Tánaiste and representatives from Greencastle
aimed to drive the case for continuing the work and
identify outstanding issues.
"In a climate where everyone has limited budgets,
agreements reached on sharing the costs need to be
addressed and not further ignored or put on the long
finger.
"I have urged action on this situation since early
this year. While it is a difficult situation it is a
challenge that needs to be met." |
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