Ulster Canal: Irish government calls for investment from NI

Investment into the Ulster Canal and a realisation of benefits it could bring to communities should be considered by politicians in Northern Ireland, an Irish government minister has said.

The Ulster Canal originally opened in 1842 and stretched 93km (57 miles) - linking Lough Erne to Lough Neagh.

However it was a commercial failure and the last barge sailed up it in 1931.

The Irish government is spending tens of millions of euros to restore part of the canal which crosses the border.

Work is ongoing to reopen a 17km link between Lough Erne and Clones in County Monaghan.

There are no plans to reopen the waterway beyond, into County Armagh and County Tyrone.

Some work has taken place in Northern Ireland but it involves improvements such as clearing vegetation and upgrading the towpath rather than reopening the canal.

Speaking at the site of a new 42-berth marina in Clones, Fine Gael politician Heather Humphreys told BBC News NI's The View programme that she would like to see the canal reopen all the way to Lough Neagh.

"My ambition is that we can move on and forge ahead and get the whole way to the border and then work its way up to Lough Neagh and then up to the [River] Lagan in due course," the Irish minister for rural and community development said

"This is transformative for communities here."

Mrs Humphreys described the work as "a peace and reconciliation project".

"This here is about bringing our communities together," she said.

"It's showing the benefit of working together and it will make a difference here in Clones, of course that will also make a difference along the route where it travels through Northern Ireland and right into Castle Saunderson in County Cavan."

Mrs Humphreys was asked what her message would be for elected representatives in Northern Ireland.

"I would say to them, there's huge potential here," she said.

"There's a huge opportunity to bring communities together, and it's a huge opportunity to show them what happens when real money is invested in an area in many, many rural areas that have often lacked investment.

"When the executive hopefully gets back up and running, we want to work with you.

"We want to work with you to make sure that the Ulster Canal can become the final piece in that jigsaw of the inland waterway system."

Northern Ireland politicians can currently not make decisions about infrastructure spending such as the Ulster Canal after the collapse of devolved government at Stormont.

The Cavan-Monaghan TD said the ongoing work to link counties Fermanagh, Cavan and Monaghan was an "iconic game changing project" for the border region, and that the Dublin administration would not be found wanting when it came to providing additional funding.

"In terms of the further progression of the Ulster Canal, I think the work needs to start on the ground, they need to do some planning in Northern Ireland to see exactly where the route is going to go," she said.

Brian Cassells has long campaigned for the reopening of the canal.

He said it had huge economic potential and accommodation and bed and breakfasts would be needed.

"We're going to need hospitality. We're going to need restaurants. We're going to need shops, selling milk, bread, butter, whatever the boaters would require," he said.

"This is the prize. We got to turn our fronts to the waterway again, because it is the future.

"The reopening of this canal threatens nobody but benefits everybody.

"Water doesn't recognize political boundaries."

He described the project as the missing link in Ireland's waterway system.

The original Ulster Canal joined the Blackwater River just outside the village of Moy.

Barry John Tomney, a local publican, feels the opportunity from reopening the canal should be grasped.

"Socially and economically it has to be positive all the way. To tap in to that potential and it on your doorstep? It would be a crime to miss it," he said.

"Politicians need to lend an eye to the future instead of looking backwards.

"Be a bit more forward thinking. Just make it happen."

In 1994, the British and Irish governments jointly opened the cross-border Shannon Erne waterway.

One of the small towns it flows through is Ballinamore in County Leitrim, just a few miles from the border with Northern Ireland.

Máirin Martin from the local community council said the waterway provided the town with a huge economic boost, creating jobs with increased tourism.

"It was a new era for the town," she said.

But it also provided new social connections.

"It created great links between north and south," she said.

"We went through the Troubles. Northern people would not have come up across the border, but now they come in their droves in the boats and it has built friendships and built up the society."

The Irish government is picking up the bill for all of the current works on the canal.

Mrs Humphreys said this was an example of the "huge commitment we are prepared to make to ensure that peace remains in Northern Ireland" and "it's about breaking down barriers".

You can see more about the Ulster Canal on BBC The View, tonight at 22:40 GMT on BBC One Northern Ireland and iPlayer.