Locals call on Government to save Dublin harbour

The residents of Skerries in Dublin are calling on the Government not to sell the town’s harbour to a private investor.

Boats have gathered there for a demonstration in an effort to keep the harbour in public ownership.

Protestors said the Government must hand it over to a local authority as is set out under the Harbours Act of 1996.

According to Sandra O’Sullivan of the Skerries Community Association, the legislation will save it from developers and preserve it as a public amenity.

She said: "The Minister for the Environment has not consented to that order, so we are in a position where the Dublin Port Company board of directors have decided that they are not interested in it commercially.

"By the Government and the local authority coming together and reaching some kind of agreement, this harbour could be saved."