Mr Ciarán Lynch TD has welcomed the move on flood alleviation measures.

He said: "I welcome the fact that senior officials in the Department of Environment Heritage and Local Government have written to the local authorities in Cork, asking them to report back on the extent to which local businesses were affected by the floods of June.

"Many business premises suffered severe damage and business owners have found it very difficult to get back on their feet. I hope that we now see the beginning of a process whereby businesses can be compensated, and where they can now take steps to repair the damage that was done. In many cases, and for a variety of reasons, insurance companies have not covered the cost of the clean-up leaving businesses exposed.

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"The impact of the flooding was catastrophic in some areas, and a lot of employers had no choice but to shut up shop and lay off workers. For that reason, it is vital that there is no further delay in dealing with this.

"I note that the Department are looking to the councils to get information back to them within the next ten days, and while that may put some councils and indeed some businesses under some pressure it is only right that this is treated as a matter of urgency."

(CD/GK)