Kirk calls for additional funding for Narrow Water Bridge

Local TD Seamus Kirk has called on the Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar to allocate additional funding to ensure the Narrow Water Bridge project can proceed.

Deputy Kirk said: “I am alarmed by the fact that Louth County Council has put this project on hold having received tenders for contractors which it says run way beyond the funding available. The Council says tenders it received for the bridge between Omeath and Warrenpoint are between €26m and €40m and this causes a “substantial funding shortfall”. There is huge support for this bridge on both sides of the border and I have raised matter directly with the Taoiseach in the Dáil this week.

“The economic and social impact of the Narrow Water Bridge will transform communities in Louth and Down. It will be an important link and many years have been spent getting the project this far. Louth County Council, public representatives, ministers and officials have all lobbied strongly to get the funding from the Northern Executive for the project. It is unconscionable that the project would fall now because of a failure of commitment from the government here.

“I am calling on Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar to meet with Louth County Council and discuss the issue as a matter of priority. The Government must step up to the plate and provide additional national funding for the Narrow Water Bridge.

The campaign to deliver this bridge started almost three decades ago and apart from the powerful symbolism of linking South Down and North Louth with this project I believe this will open up the area for new investment and job creation.

“It is extremely important that Minister Varadkar and the Taoiseach respond to this issue with urgency and in a proactive manner. The communities on both sides of the border deserve to see these issues resolved as soon as possible and the project proceed.”