Is iomaí pobail atá ag ullmhú do thuilte anois agus arís uile ina dtithe agus ina gcomhlachtaí. Tá imní orthu ar fud an Stáit agus tá siad ag mothú tréigthe. Tá sé seo ag tarlú roimh súile an Tánaiste agus ní rud nua é. Bhí sé agus tá sé i gcroílár an Rialtais le breis agus deich mbliana agus bhí sé ina Aire é féin le linn eachtraí tuilte arís agus arís eile. Le linn na blianta sin, thug Rialtais ina raibh sé ina bhall sinsireach dóibh dearbhaithe arís is arís eile go mbeadh cosaint bhuan ar deireadh i gcoinne tuilte, ach níl sé sin feicthe againn. Today, many communities are bracing themselves for repeat flooding of their homes and businesses. Homes have been destroyed and businesses have been wrecked. Families are once again clearing out the water and debris knowing this destruction was predictable and preventable. This is happening on the Tánaiste's watch and it is not new. He has been at the heart of Governments for more than a decade now. He has been a Minister during repeated flooding events and, during those years, Governments of which he was a senior member repeatedly assured communities that permanent flood defences would finally be delivered.

After the floods of 2015 and 2016 when communities were devastated, he was the Minister of State with responsibility for flood defences. Yet years later, many of the same flood relief schemes identified, prioritised or advanced during that period remain incomplete, with a significant number still stuck at planning stage, or worse, at design stage, rather than being built. This is the reality behind his record of broken promises. This is not a failure of information; it is a failure of political follow through.

In 2018, the Government completed a nationwide flood risk assessment. It knows where the danger points are. Nearly every county has flood relief issues and communities have been lobbying for action ever since. Yet, the figures are stark. There are 94 flood relief schemes that are described as ongoing, 68 of which have not even reached planning stage and 54 of which are not in active consideration at all. Many of these schemes were identified or progressed during the very years when communities were being assured by the Tánaiste that the Government was acting. Instead of accepting responsibility, the Government has blamed everyone but itself, the weather, local authorities, even Met Éireann has been thrown in for good measure. Met Éireann does not build flood defences. Local authorities do not decide on national capital priorities. The responsibility rests with the Government and the consequences of this are being felt by communities across the State in Aughrim, Arklow, Enniscorthy and Bunclody, where repeated flooding has damaged homes, businesses and vital infrastructure.

Years of cuts to local authority road budgets since 2008 by successive Governments of which the Tánaiste was a member have left roads in a dreadful state. Flooding and heavy rain are now finishing them off, creating a serious road safety issue in counties like Wexford and Wicklow. Last week in Bunclody, a school bus was forced to abandon its route when the road beneath it collapsed and 53 families were affected. This damage was foreseeable. It was warned about and it was avoidable.

Given the Tánaiste's record and the broken promises made during his years in government, what concrete action will he take now to ensure permanent flood relief is finally delivered? Will he set out clear decisions, timelines and funding commitments today for flood defences and emergency road repairs? Will these communities be asked to accept this and wait another ten years - another decade - and for another series of broken promises, clearing out their homes and businesses after every storm, while the Government recycles the same old promises, broken again and again?

Hear, hear

First, as we are not talking about this weather situation, we are not looking back; we are talking about here and now. I am conscious as we discuss this in the House today that a status orange weather warning is currently in place for counties Dublin, Wicklow, Waterford and now also County Louth. Yellow warnings are in place for nine other counties as well. On top of that, the Road Safety Authority has issued advice in the last little while asking people, particularly in the orange warning areas, but more generally as well, to try to avoid driving in impacted areas if possible today and if they do have to drive to allow significantly more time. We continue to work on this on a constant basis and have done so for what has been a prolonged period. I know well some of the communities that have been flooded, including communities in my county. The Government will do all we can to assist.

We have already taken practical action in the here and now. The Minister, Deputy Peter Burke, opened a scheme for businesses to be able to get assistance and we took a decision this week to significantly increase the amount of financial assistance people can avail of, up to €100,000. There were 14 applications for that scheme when I last checked this morning. We opened the emergency assistance scheme for homeowners who have been affected and more than 100 claims have now been processed through it. Community welfare officers are on the ground helping people to avail of it and get assistance as quickly as they can.

I have had a number of engagements in government this week. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Moran, who is present in the House, for the huge amount of hard work he is putting in on the ground. He made the point to us which is worth amplifying that while a number of communities need large scale flood relief schemes - I will get to that in a moment - we cannot have a situation where there is a kind of impasse until those large scale schemes are delivered. We have to look at what can be done in the here and now. The Minister of State, Deputy Moran, made the point to me, that in such areas as Portrane, Clontarf and Listowel relatively minor works have made a real and meaningful difference. The Government's focus in the days ahead will be to work intensively with local authorities to identify what more can be done in the here and how, like AquaDams, pumps, embankments and minor works, alongside advancing the major flood relief schemes.

It is not a question of blaming anyone. Met Éireann does an absolutely excellent job. There is no doubt about that, but there is a legitimate question to be asked about how we can modernise our warning systems even further. I hope the Deputy agrees with that. It should not be a partisan issue. A yellow rain warning can mean one thing if the river levels are low. It can mean a very different thing if the river levels are high. The county by county warning system can sometimes be misleading. The rain and wind do not neatly abide by county boundaries.

There is a legitimate conversation to have about what more information we can put into the public domain, listening to the experts, scientists and local authorities. That is what we intend to do. More broadly, a lot of progress has been made on flood relief. There is €1.3 billion in funding in the national development plan to deliver major flood relief schemes. The OPW has already completed 56 flood relief schemes, protecting 13,000 properties and avoiding estimated damage of around €2 billion. We have seen 900 projects already funded and approved through the OPW's so-called minor works schemes. Ten schemes are under construction nationwide, including in Athlone, Crossmolina, Glashaboy, King's Island, the Morell River, Morrison's Island, the Poddle River, the River Wad, Templemore and Whitechurch.

We will need, and I hope we will, have cross-party support on this. As well as doing the interim works I have mentioned, we will need to look at how we can assess this as critical infrastructure alongside a number of other areas. The Government intends to bring forward a critical infrastructure Bill. It is working around the clock on this with State agencies. I thank the people on the front line for the work they are doing in this extraordinarily challenging situation.

Let us park the weather forecast to one side because that is not our responsibility.

That is a disgraceful comment.

RTÉ does a fine job with that. Let us deal with what we are responsible for. The Tánaiste has been a Minister through flood after flood. What did the Tánaiste say, sorry?

That is a disgraceful comment.

Let us look at what the Tánaiste is responsible for. He has been a Minister in Cabinet, indeed even Taoiseach, during flood after flood. Each time, communities were told that action would follow. He talks about the new buzzword "the here and now". I am talking about what has happened in the last ten years, because people were promised that there would be action from the Government. Does the Tánaiste know how many schemes have been delivered since he made the promise in 2016? It is not 56; that number goes back to 1997. Did he know that? That is 30 years ago. Since the Tánaiste became a Minister, promising people that his Government would take action, only 17 major schemes have been completed. One hundred and forty-eight schemes have been identified. These are areas that are prone to flooding, identified by a specialised report, and none of those 148 have been completed. Some are not even in design stage yet. That is not the here and now. That is ten years on.

I thank the Deputy.

What is going to be different this time? Please do not recite the weather again. What is the Government going to do differently this time to fulfil the promises that it made to communities ten years ago that have seen repeated flooding and families having to clean out debris, their houses and their businesses, with no action from Government on the horizon?

I hope I will get the same latitude. Deputy Doherty just cannot help himself. Flood warnings are in place in Northern Ireland. If, God forbid, anywhere floods in Northern Ireland, I am not going to blame Michelle O'Neill, because this is not about party politics or partisan politics. This is about acting. If the Deputy wants to say that me doing my job, coming into this House and amplifying, as we have been asked-----

I want you to build the flood reliefs. Build the flood reliefs. That is your job. Do you want to tell the families to get the sandbags ready? Protect the communities. You have had ten years to do it.

Leave the bully boy antics out of the Chamber today and just for once take off the party jersey. If you are suggesting that amplifying, as we have been asked to do by the RSA, the fact that people should be careful on the roads today and avoid driving-----

Stop, stop

If you are suggesting that the glib weather forecast-----

Answer the question.

People are watching this today and it is extremely important to get the facts out.

Please answer your broken promises. Diversion tactics.

I do not care about engaging with Deputy Doherty but the people who are-----

The Tánaiste, please.

Please, Deputy. Gabhaim buíochas leis an Leas-Cheann Comhairle. A bit of decorum would be great. People are looking at this today and want to know what is going to happen, and I want to tell them. There will be an increased focus on allowing local authorities to fast-track more works that can be done in the here and now. There are already examples, with 900 that have been delivered. Flood relief schemes have been classified as critical infrastructure. There is an overhaul of the flood warning schemes and help for people, including business assistance and humanitarian assistance. I also hope-----

Is the Tánaiste embarrassed?

-----the party that are climate deniers will come back and have a discussion.

Seventeen schemes in ten years. Is he embarrassed? He should be. He has abandoned those communities over and over again.

They are not listening.

Today is not a day for party politics but, unfortunately for Deputy Doherty, he just cannot reach deeper, even on a day like today. Shame on you, Pearse.

Shame on you. You have left your own communities abandoned. Seventeen schemes in ten years, or do you want to go back 30 years? You should be embarrassed.

Deputies, please. Every Thursday morning-----

Twenty years-----

Deputy Gould. Every Thursday morning is turning into a bad exchange between the Tánaiste and Deputy Doherty.

It is what-----

No, it is between both of you

He who is without sin

I appeal to Members around the House to please observe a bit of decorum and respect. Make your point, by all means, and be as robust as you wish, but recognise the time that has been given and that people are listening and suffering because of the floods, so they need to get information as well.