419. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the current and capital annual budget allocated for the Fishery Harbour Centre and Coastal Infrastructure Development Programme for each of the years 2025 and 2026; the estimated cost of increasing this budget by 5% and 10% respectively, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46408/26]

My Department owns, operates, develops and maintains six designated State-owned Fishery Harbour Centres, located at Castletownbere, Dingle, Dunmore East, Howth, Killybegs and Ros An Mhíl. My Department also has responsibility for the upkeep and maintenance of North Harbour at Cape Clear, as well as the maintenance of a small number of specific piers, lights and beacons throughout Ireland.

Hence, every year, my Department allocates funding under the Fishery Harbour Centre and Coastal Infrastructure Development Programme, which contains details of the capital projects planned for each Fishery Harbour Centre, North Harbour, along with those other piers, lights and beacons that the Department has responsibility for.

The programme also includes provisions for our Local Authority Marine Infrastructure Scheme. This scheme provides funding to coastal Local Authorities for a wide range of shovel-ready capital projects, such as pier repairs, slipway upgrades, safety improvements and enhancement of marine leisure facilities.

The Fishery Harbour Centre and Coastal Infrastructure Development Programme is an annual capital investment programme. Fishery Harbour Centres do not receive exchequer funding for operational costs, apart from a small number of clerical staff. Current expenditure for the day-to-day operations, staffing, and routine maintenance of these centres is mainly self-financed through commercial revenue generated directly by the harbours, primarily via harbour dues and property rentals and supplemented by cash reserves.

The table below details the capital funding allocated to the programme for each of the years 2025 and 2026, including the cost of increasing each of those years’ allocations by 5% and 10% respectively. The Carryover figure represents my Department's allocation of unspent funds to the programme from the previous fiscal year approved during the Revised Estimates Process.

Capital Funding Allocations & Projected Increases (2025–2026)