Coast Guard Service
Dail Éireann — 2026-05-14
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Malcolm Byrne (FF), Wicklow-Wexford

I thank the Minister of State for taking this on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Canney. I have no doubt the response from the Department will outline the rich history of the old rocket house station and the importance of the Coast Card to our coastal communities in north Wexford and south Wicklow. As the Minister of State comes from a coastal county, he is very appreciative of the work of the Coast Guard.
I will not go into the rich history of the Coast Guard but I will speak about the recent history. For over a decade there has been a demand for a much-needed coastal facility. When I was in the Seanad on 24 February 2022 I had a Commencement debate with the then Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, during which she informed us that six sites for a new Coast Guard facility had been identified by the OPW and that Courtown was on the priority list. On 23 November 2022, the Minister, Deputy Harris, came to the Seanad for a Commencement debate and told me Courtown was one of the key priorities for the OPW and that the OPW officials were giving the project every priority possible at the time. In the summer of 2023, the Minister, Deputy Chambers, met Wexford County Council and the Coast Guard in Courtown so there would be no issue with any potential site and it was resolved. On 10 October 2023, in a Commencement debate taken by the then Minister of State, Senator Rabbitte, I was told that Courtown was one of the key priorities for the OPW.
On 24 April 2024 when I raised it as a Commencement matter with the Minister of State, Deputy O'Donnell, he told me he could see it was matter I had been raising for quite a significant period. He said that new accommodation for the Courtown Coast Guard unit was included in the Coast Guard building programme. He said it was worth repeating that it was one of the key priorities of the delivery programme. He said a preferred site had been identified, the OPW was in discussions, that it would then move to appointing a project team and, following this, planned and detailed design. This was in April 2024. I thought that was great and that we would see progress.
The general election happened and I ended up in this House. On 15 May 2025 I raised a Topical Issue debate taken by the Minister of State, Deputy Troy. He told me the OPW had identified a preferred site that was now awaiting approval of funding but the draft heads of terms, including the price, had been agreed on the new site. On 20 November 2025, in a written response, the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, told me a potential site had been identified after the 2024 appraisal process but the Department had requested there would be a further market trawl. He assured me it was still a priority for the Department. Come 14 April of this year, in a written response, the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, reassured me the provision of a new station for the unit remains a priority for the Department, and he pointed out a further market trawl had been carried out in Courtown.
We have known for a long time it has been a priority. We went from six sites to five sites to heads of terms to a further market trawl. A temporary solution has been found which is not acceptable. There has been no consultation with the local Coast Guard. Will the Minister of State tell us when the new Coast Guard facility will be constructed in Courtown?

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-05-14/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:56+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-05-14