Flood warning systems should be further developed, report warns
The Cloghroe-Banteer road in Cork was severely flooded during Storm Babet. Picture: Denis Minihane.
The Office of Public Works (OPW) and Met Éireann should further develop their flood forecasting and warning systems, a report on recent storms Babet, Ciarán, and Debi has recommended.
The report, prepared by the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management, was brought to Cabinet by Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien on Tuesday.
The report also calls for further integration of staff within the Departments of Social Protection and Enterprise, Trade, and Employment.
In particular, it says that community welfare service staff and the Department of Enterprise staff should be integrated into any local storm responses, ensuring a coordinated and rapid assessment of needs and intervention.
Storm Babet saw torrential rain and significant flooding in Cork in late October. Some weather stations in the area recorded a month's rainfall (115mm) over a period of 24 hours.
The Government set up new schemes to pay out up to €70,000 to businesses that were badly hit by the flooding, particularly in areas such as Midleton.
Met Éireann has recently warned that storm surges and devastating flooding are likely to increase into the future as climate changes.
Alongside the flooding report, Cabinet agreed to split the Child Care Amendment Bill into two separate pieces of legislation.
Children's Minister Roderic O’Gorman sought approval for the change, meaning that there will be more immediate changes to the existing Child Care Act 1991. This will focus on regulations to allow childminders to access the existing National Childcare scheme.
The second piece of legislation will focus on amending the Child Care Act in areas focused on child protection.
The first set of amendments are planned to be passed through the Oireachtas before the summer recess, while the second set will not enter into the Dáil until the autumn.
Cabinet also agreed to allocate €100m for the construction of 1,014 purpose-built student accommodation beds.
Some 493 beds will be provided at University College Dublin (UCD), with 405 at Dublin City University (DCU), and 116 for Maynooth University.
It is expected that construction will commence this year at both DCU and Maynooth University, while work will start at UCD in early 2025.
A third of the new beds will be for students who either avail of the Susi grant or come from a low-income family.
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