Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I will, of course. I thank the Chairman and the Deputy. I am keenly aware of the significant interest of Deputy Ó Broin in this area, especially in modern architecture. I thank him for his questions. As regards the national policy on architecture, he is aware the policy is to support and promote architectural quality and sustainability and it will contain policy actions to encourage best quality in researching, understanding, designing, managing, enhancing and reusing our existing built environmental assets, as well as delivering sustainable new places and spaces. The draft policy has been prepared and is now going to a copy editor, as I said in my opening statement, for further refinement ahead of publication in January. Ms Caitríona Ryan of the built heritage unit of the Department is present and I will ask her to contribute when I finish addressing the Deputy's three questions.

As was stated, the process for the national monuments legislation started in 2009. This is a consolidation of well over 100 years of national monuments legislation, so it is very much welcome. It was approved by Cabinet, having been brought to it by the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, approximately two weeks ago. We hope to get the Bill before the committee as soon as possible in the new year. I have spoken to the Chairman in that regard. Mr. Michael MacDonagh of the national monuments service, who is present, might give a more in-depth outline in terms of the Deputy's question on protection of modern architectural heritage.

As regards the National Parks and Wildlife Service review, the piece prepared by Professor Jane Stout and Dr. Micheál Ó Cinnéide was completed several weeks ago. That first review phase is still in draft and being completed. We hope the next phase will be completed by the end of January, at which point we will be able to bring an update to Cabinet and then move to the final phase. All going well and notwithstanding the significant challenges, I hope we will soon be ready to do so. We decided to expand this out to consider the resources that have come in since the Government was formed in 2020 and to use that to work with the Stout-Ó Cinnéide report in terms of the really expansive work that was done across all stakeholders to try to get to a point where we had a very consolidated and strong plan for a future vision for the NPWS. As the Deputy is aware, it is critically important to deliver on nature and biodiversity for the next decade. All going well, that work should be completed by mid-2022.

I ask Ms Ryan to come in specifically on the architectural policy and Mr. MacDonagh to come in with a more detailed response on the national monuments legislation.