Much of the country is inundated with floodwater at the moment. The Government cannot control the weather, but it can control the delivery of flood defences and the forecasting systems that can protect people in this country. In those two areas, the Government has been a disaster. Two years ago, I asked the Minister for public expenditure the timeframes for the delivery of flood defence schemes in the country. He did not give an answer. Government Ministers are allergic to measurables in case they can be held to account.

The Minister told me there were 46 schemes at the design stage at that time. Let us look at a couple of those. In Midleton in 2023, during Storm Babet, 600 homes and 300 businesses were flooded. The damage was estimated at €200 million, which is incredible. People came within a hair's breadth of losing their lives in Midleton. The damage was unprecedented but was not unforeseen because Storm Frank had devastated the exact same area in 2015. In 2015, flood defences were promised, with a completion date of 2020.

Today the planning application for those flood defences has still not even been submitted to Cork County Council. It is an incredible situation. When it rains in Midleton, an elderly gentleman often stays awake at night to watch the height of the river in order to be able to warn families of impending danger. Eleven years after Storm Frank, Midleton is dependent on a human water gauge for the protection of lives under the Tánaiste's Government. Enniscorthy has been waiting 25 years for protection. In 2014, €55 million was allocated to flood relief schemes in Enniscorthy. This week Enniscorthy is a lake. There have been 12 floods in 25 years and planning permission for these flood defences has still not been granted.

Practically every single piece of infrastructure development in this country is grinding to a halt. Housing is in reverse. It will be 2050 before Uisce Éireann has the gaps in the infrastructure filled. The grid cannot take the renewable energy that is created at the moment. Commuters are sitting on motorways that look like car parks. Tens of thousands of families are currently at risk due to flooding because those defences are not in place. Why? It is because the Tánaiste's Government has the slowest planning, licensing, permitting, tendering and judicial reviews in the whole of the European Union.

Flood forecasting too has been incredibly slow. Met Éireann does not provide flood forecasts to the public. It provides rainfall forecasts that do not give a full picture in terms of ground saturation. There are no real-time weather stations recording rainfall in mountain areas and in the catchment areas of the major rivers. The national flood forecast and warning service was announced in 2016, yet ten years later none of these flood forecasts are being made available to the public. Councils know this information and people will get it but only if they ask the councils what is happening. I believe that the glacial pace of infrastructural delivery in this country is costing lives and is costing people dearly. Will the Tánaiste detail today when the outstanding flood defences that are promised will be delivered?

I thank Deputy Tóibín for raising the issue and asking the questions. First, I just want to be conscious in my own comments that there are still weather warnings in place in our country. The weather event that many communities are experiencing is still ongoing, with particular warnings for Dublin, Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford, Wicklow and Waterford. There is more rain forecast over the coming days and flooding will continue to be a risk due to saturated ground conditions and very elevated river levels. I urge everyone to continue to exercise caution as conditions can change quickly, to monitor the Met Éireann forecasts and to follow the advice of local authorities. I want to thank all the local authority crews, the ESB crews and others who are working hard with communities and often in very adverse conditions.

I remind people that the Government financial schemes of assistance are now both open. There is a scheme in relation to homeowners under the Department of Social Protection, and the Minister, Deputy Calleary, has made that clear. There is also a scheme under the Department of enterprise for businesses affected, and the Minister, Deputy Burke, made that clear yesterday. Our national emergency co-ordination group, and the humanitarian subgroup of that, are meeting daily and will meet again today to continue to assess the situation and co-ordinate responses as required.

The Minister of State, Deputy Boxer Moran, is currently visiting communities that have been affected. I know he was in Dublin earlier today and he has been in Wicklow. I believe he is going to Enniscorthy to meet with people there today. That is important. He will be looking to see what can be done in the here and now to assist communities as well.

The Deputy made two specific points. I could stand here and list a number of flood relief schemes that have been delivered, the significant benefits of which we are seeing in areas of our country that used to flood but which do not now experience that flooding. That, however, is cold comfort to the communities that are waiting and I am conscious of that. The Deputy will understand why I do not accept the assertion that nothing has been done in relation to flood relief. In fact, I would point to significant progress and money that has been spent right across the country delivering flood relief schemes that are really helping to protect homes, communities and businesses.

I accept the Deputy's point that it is taking far too long to deliver far too many. The Deputy referenced Enniscorthy and I too want to reference that. This is a scheme where we have committed the funding. Some €51 million is committed to the Enniscorthy project under the national development plan. That remains the position. We now need to see how we can accelerate flood relief schemes. I am not just saying that today. The House will remember that we published the accelerating infrastructure task force report just before Christmas. We will be bringing to this House a critical infrastructure Bill. We have to recognise there are some things, such as environmental issues and individual views people can have, that matter but there is also something else that matters, which is the public good. Lives, livelihoods and homes have to be at the top of the pecking order when it comes to our planning system. Let us be honest that sometimes that does not always seem to be the way. We hear about the mussel delaying the flood relief scheme in Enniscorthy. It is the people of Enniscorthy that I am concerned about. Our critical infrastructure Bill will specifically address the fast-tracking of flood relief schemes.

In my second answer, I will come back on the flood forecasting piece. We will be having a Cabinet committee specifically on storms and floods in a very short time to stock take all of the various flood relief schemes and to look at the lessons of Storm Éowyn and the progress that has been made in relation to that. I am very happy for the relevant Minister to provide an update.

I can remember a long list of Ministers splashing around floods in their top boots for photographs. I can even remember former Minister Joan Burton falling out of a canoe when looking at a flood system. None of this gives any confidence at all to people who are being inundated at the moment. The Tánaiste talks about the critical infrastructure. My problem with the Tánaiste is that he has been here for 15 years yet if we remove the future tense he is silent on delivery. This is an incredible situation. In Clontarf, flood defences will have been 30 years from concept to completion. A scheme in Sandymount was promised 20 years ago but will not be delivered until 2032. Galway was promised works in 2019 but it will 2035 before delivery. These are all with the caveat, "If everything goes well". The Tánaiste must be embarrassed by the length of time it is taking for the delivery of infrastructure in his area.

In terms of the clean up, I know of homes that are not getting sandbags from their communities. Business people I am talking to are still not clear about what exactly is covered in relation to this. Will their earnings be covered? Will it be means tested? People have lost their cars. We have seen cars submerged. They will not be paid for their cars. People feel it is unfair that people from Ukraine had their cars fixed by the Government a year ago and yet these cars will not be fixed in this particular situation. Everybody should be treated equally in this country in relation to fixing of cars. When will the Tánaiste fix these issues?

I am not sure how the Deputy segued Ukraine in there but he did.

I am just saying that everybody should be treated equally.

I agree with that but I am not sure how helping people from Ukraine links to a flood situation.

I am saying it because cars are not being paid for.

That is the point the Deputy made and our response to Ukraine is another point. I am not sure the conflation of the two is particularly helpful on this occasion.

You still have not-----

I am going to answer Deputy Tóibín's question. I am very proud of the record we have in delivering many flood relief schemes across the country. I can think of Clonmel, west Cork, Mayo, and I can think of many. I am equally frustrated, as is Deputy Tóibín, but nowhere near as frustrated as the people of the communities affected, that it is taking far too long to deliver far too many. That is why in our general election campaign we talked about a new approach to infrastructure. That is why when this Government came together we agreed to accelerate the delivery of infrastructure. It is why we are identifying specific areas of need as critical infrastructure. It is why we intend to legislate for that this year with the co-operation of the Opposition. Instead of all just coming in here and slinging insults at each other, let us actually pass legislation that might make a blind bit of difference to people. That is our job. We will bring forward critical infrastructure legislation.

On the flood forecasting, Met Éireann does a very good job. I thank Met Éireann for the job that it does but we need to have a conversation about what information we can usefully make available to help. When people hear that there is a yellow rain warning that has a very different context depending on the river levels and depending on the levels of saturation. After every storm, it is important to reflect on that.