Water Safety
Dail Éireann — 2024-03-05
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Richard Boyd Barrett (PBP), Dún Laoghaire

I am afraid the Minister did not answer the question, which is about how we will deal with the situation that Ireland has a significantly worse rate of drownings than many of our western European counterparts including, significantly, a drowning rate that is double that of the North of Ireland, which is on this island. It is significantly higher than the UK.
I will give the Minister a few clues. They have lifeguards in the North of Ireland from April to October, but we have them for June, July and August. This is a simple thing. It would cost money to local authorities, but they should spend it to save lives, by having lifeguards available with the equipment. Here, our lifeguards are given a whistle. Everywhere else, they are given all-terrain vehicles, defibrillators and radios and they are employed on proper terms and conditions.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2024-03-05/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:52:45+00:00
Sitting date: 2024-03-05