MR. BOLANLD (Kerry, S.)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that the Congested Districts Board have endeavoured to complete the toe-end of the slip at Boat Cove, Glen, county Kerry, by using, against expert local advice, creosoted balk instead of concrete, which they had used for the rest of the slip; that, having found that the balks would not stand the high tides and gales, they have now taken the work to pieces; and whether, in view of the 1281 fact that the fishermen of the neighbouring fishing stations have been enabled to secure catches of from 20,000 to 30,000mackerel weekly, whilst the Boat Cove fishermen have only secured about 1,600, owing to the want of proper landing facilities, the Congested Districts Board will now use concrete for the completion of this slip.
THE CHIEF SECRETARY FOR IRELAND (Mr. Bryce, Aberdeen, S.)I am informed that the work in question can only be executed at low spring tides. The work had been satisfactorily advanced at the recent low spring tides when an exceptionally severe gale caused the demolition of the work before the concrete part of it had time to set. The method of construction employed is, in the opinion of the Board's engineer, the only possible one. Mass concrete such as was used for the original structure would not be suitable for the extension to deeper water. No expert advice, local or otherwise, was tendered to the Board. The work will be completed, weather permitting, next spring. The extension will have the effect of allowing fishermen to haul up their boats from half-an-hour to an hour sooner than at present, in the case of low tides. In the Board's opinion, it is quite impossible that its presence or absence can materially affect the result of the fishing. It will be an occasional convenience, but nothing more.