Dr. Marie Bourke:

The Senator's many comments were very well made. His reference to the Magdalen laundries and that aspect of our past was very important. We need to identify issues that have not been a happy part of our past. It took us a long time to identify the Famine and all that went with it. That is continually being reviewed, revised and reinterpreted. That will come once we identify sites and mark areas, and it is very important. Already, stories and poetry are being written about it but it is still very painful in people's memories.

When the Senator mentioned the issue of the metal detectors, I was reminded of the recent find in Donegal a few months ago.

That was through farming, the traditional way of sourcing finds. That is the ideal way to source a find. It was great that when that find was discovered, our colleagues from the National Museum travelled up literally overnight and it was on display the next day in Donegal County Museum. That is the way local communities need to work together so that it is shown in its county before it travels for research.

It is fantastic that the committee visited the National Library. I cannot but imagine that Dr. Sandra Collins was thrilled about that. The National Library is one of those institutions that is long overdue attention. I visited recently looking at the changing facilities and how they will provide a service to the public while they put so much of their material in store, in order improve their storage facilities but, more particularly, in order to improve their public-facing engaging facilities. What they have programmed coming down the track is fantastic.

When one has collections, it is difficult to manage them. The National Museum, which is, in fact, over four sites, has vast collections to manage. The National Gallery took the decision during its refurbishment programme to keep everything on-site no matter what was the best way to protect it. There is no perfect solution to this problem. Glasgow has formed a storage facility where several of their museums house their collections and it is accessible. However, it cost a great deal to set that up and maintain it and for the staff to make it available to the public. The institutions are working with the Department, the OPW and other bodies to see how they can better manage their collections, particularly at a time when conservation is becoming eco-friendly. There are new approaches to conservation that are not as rigorous as those in the past. Senator Warfield's comments were well made. In this arena, it is welcome to be discussing a subject like this.