Extra €70m for flood repairs won’t be enough

Local authorities are to get €70m for flood repairs after the recent storms, but the fund will not stretch to all required works.

The money was promised after the Cabinet was briefed yesterday on the scale of the damage caused by the succession of storms that have battered the country since the end of last year. It comes on top of a €25m emergency fund sanctioned for humanitarian relief for people struggling to recover flooded homes and businesses.

The move was broadly welcomed, but with costs in Co Clare alone standing at €37m, and some estimates putting the total value of damage to infrastructure countrywide at around €100m, town and city councils face a battle to secure sufficient funds.