Councillor Pat Treanor is a Sinn Féin member of Monaghan County Council. According to the Clones Regeneration Partnership’s website,
Cllr Treanor referred to the recent economic appraisals carried out by Fitzpatrick Associates on behalf of the Government and made reference to the large job creation and physical regeneration that would flow from the [Clones] canal proposal.
As far as I know, the most recent Fitzpatrick study was published in 2007. It said (Ch 10):
In terms of formal quantified economic appraisal, all restoration options involve significant net costs over benefits.
In other words, the Clones canal is a waste of money.
Clones folk might like to have a large wodge of public money spent in their area; Waterways Ireland might like to be able to keep engineers in employment. But neither of those wishes should weigh with those charged with the care of the state’s finances. If proposals like this are seriously considered by Irish government departments, then the sooner Angela Merkel appoints an official to run the place, the better.
Perhaps, though, a household tax in Monaghan could be used to pay for this, er, investment?
Irish waterways history 