Allister accuses Dublin of seeking to damage Warrenpoint port
04 September 2008
Traditional Unionist MEP Jim Allister has complained in the European Parliament that the Irish Republic is deliberately targeting and seeking to damage Warrenpoint port by promoting a new alternative port just 6 miles away at Greenore.
Warrenpoint is a public trust port, where a recent 20m investment has made it a major economic driver for the south-west of the Province and provided state of the art roll-on roll-off facilities. Now its future is challenged by a proposal to develop a similar facility at the mouth of Carlingford Lough, at Greenore in the Republic of Ireland. There the facility is substantially publicly owned, with the government's Dublin Port Authority as a major shareholder. The Greenore proposal has benefited from a special derogation from the normal planning process to treat it as a strategic infrastructural project. It is feared that if approved it will steal much of Warrenpoint's trade.
Using a debate in the European Parliament on EU Port's Policy, Jim Allister highlighted the concerns and bereted the Dublin authorities for promoting a project so prejudicial to Northern Ireland's economic interests. He has also written directly to the relevant Commissioner to raise his concerns.
In the course of his remarks Mr Allister said:-
"Paragraph 44 of this report calls on Member States to employ a trans-border approach to the use of existing capacities when co-financing port infrastructure. In simple terms that means one state should not duplicate and prejudice existing neighbouring facilities. Yet, that is precisely what is happening to my constiuency.
Warrenpoint has been built up, with significant investment, into a thriving roll-on roll-off ferry port. Now just 6 miles away at Greenore in the Republic of Ireland it is proposed to duplicate these facilities and to do it with public money through a company which is part owned by the Dublin Government.
I hear much from Ireland's politicians about wanting to help and co-operate with Northern Ireland. Well, then, I have to ask why are they trying to supplant and destroy our port at Warrenpoint? I call on the Commission to take action on what I believe would be an abuse of state aid rules and any sensible ports policy."
