Joe Flaherty (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the speakers from the organisations for coming before us today. It has been a very informative session. In my short time in Dáil Éireann - it is just over two years now - we have seen significant progress in the area. I pay tribute to my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Noonan, who has really shone a light on the area and been a driving force in respect of it. Any of the engagements I have had with him on heritage matters have been extremely positive. It is important to put that on record.

I will focus on the Heritage Council for a moment. There was mention of a number of community archaeologists operating across Galway, Sligo, south Dublin and, closest to me, in Roscommon, as well as the Burren. What are the criteria or how is something like that initiated? Does the proposal come from the council or are there pre-existing sites? What is the process for getting a community archaeologist involved?