Narrow Water Bridge

North-South relations and the game the Irish government wont play anymore.

David McCann on November 18, 2013, 11:24 pm | Readers 92

The past week has not been a good one for North-South relations as the EU funding was pulled for the Narrow Water Bridge. Mick noted the general disengagement of the Irish government in an earlier post but as I sat at the NI21 Conference, I listened to the Junior Finance Minister, Brian Hayes TD, give his verdict on North-South relations which to me highlights our current problem in this area as he said; There has been too much navel gazing …

Taoiseach promises to ‘look into it’ just as the eleventh hour passes on Narrow Water bridge…

Mick Fealty on November 16, 2013, 9:56 am | Readers 77

So the EU money is gone, withdrawn as Wesley Johnston notes on the grounds “that the project’s instigators (Louth County Council) have not been able to secure sufficient funding to complete it in time for the deadline of June 2015”. Locally Paul Malone of the Newry Times seems fairly sanguine about a project that’s been mouldering in the local imagination for forty years… The Interreg IVA fund pulled out in the end because of a shortfall of just £5m, which …

Narrow Water Bridge: “Yet when confronted with a real initiative that would help boost trade, we say no…”

Mick Fealty on August 20, 2013, 10:49 am | Readers 153

By David McCann Just under a month ago, politicians in Stormont and the Dáil dealt a hammer blow to the Narrow Water bridge scheme. Citing escalating costs the former Finance Minister, Sammy Wilson, refused to pledge more funds to make up the £10 million shortfall that would be needed to build the bridge. This decision by politicians on both sides of the border to halt this vitally important project is a prime example of short sighted policy making. Let’s take …

Louth County Council Suspend Narrow Water Bridge Project

Pete Baker on July 9, 2013, 4:05 pm | Readers 70

Looks like the Northern Ireland Finance Minister’s caution was justified. As the BBC report Plans to build a cross-border-bridge between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic have been put on hold. Louth County Council said tenders had been significantly above the figure expected for the Narrow Water bridge project, leading it to halt it. RTÉ has the figures involved. The council today said the tenders for the 195m cable-stay bridge across the river Newry at Narrow Water ranged from €26m to €40m, …

“this Department is not in a position to proceed any further with the Narrow Water Bridge project”

Pete Baker on July 13, 2011, 2:58 pm | Readers 37

When it was announced in February 2008, the proposed “lovely looking bridge” at Narrow Water, Co Down, to link the Omeath to Newry Road in Co Louth with the A2 Newry to Warrenpoint road, Co Down, produced an unseemly scramble by three then-members of the Northern Ireland Executive. By contrast, as far as I can tell, the latest news of the project has been met by silence… From Dáil written answers 5 July 627. Deputy Seamus Kirk asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism …