Ms Catherine Heaney:

We have already commenced engagement with the Department and have approval for additional resources. I set out a number of measures on the HR function and want to reiterate that HR issues exist in all organisations.

I want to come back on points that were made about the staff survey prior to the adjournment. I am a fan of good quality research and research methodologies. The survey was exactly that - a survey. I consider canvassing staff for feedback to be a good practice in HR, not something that should be distributed to the media for headlines. It is a useful tool for management to address HR concerns, but it is not the only tool. If we were to do more adequate research, that would require funds. I want to correct the record, that all staff completed the survey, they did not, about two-thirds did. We need to be very clear about that.

There were also some positives in that survey. I want to state that about 93% of staff said they were happy to come to work. That is what I observed. In case a message goes out there that there are not good staff and good attitudes to work in the museum, my experience is that there are. I acknowledge there are problems but we are working incredibly hard to address them.

I assure the committee that my board and I put in roughly eight to 20 hours voluntary service per week to address a number of challenges we have as a board and we try to balance all the challenges, giving due attention to each one. I think we will be able with the committee's support to bring the museum into the future with a proper roadmap that very much takes into consideration the shape of our collections and how we present them. I previously raised issues concerning the long-term future of the storage of our collections. These are all significant policy issues with which we must grapple. It is not just a matter of HR; the museum has a wide remit. The legislation is substantial. I have it here. I carry it around with me. I am always reminded of our wide-ranging functions.