Press reports from last week’s plenary meeting [10 June 2011] of the North-South Ministerial Council suggest that Waterways Ireland and other cross-border bodies will be facing cuts. The Irish Independent, for example, quotes Peter Robinson, Northern Ireland’s First Minister, saying this:
There are no sacred cows. We want more for less and that is as much in respect of cross-border bodies as in any part of our administration.
Because the proportion of its current income contributed by each of the two governments is fixed, one side cannot unilaterally cut the amount it gives Waterways Ireland. These reports suggest that both sides want to cut WI’s income, although they might be satisfied with higher productivity in some form.
The press reports do not say whether the Clones [né Ulster] Canal was discussed. The NSMC website does not yet have a report of the meeting.
Irish waterways history 