Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will ask the Minister about the transfer of Shannon Heritage sites to local authorities in the mid-west. This comes under the Minister's Department at the moment because Shannon Heritage is managed by the Shannon Group.

A Cabinet decision was taken in, I think, summer 2021, where Cabinet collectively felt the best way forward for iconic sites like Bunratty Castle and others was to vest them in local authorities where they could be better run and managed. All of that has been progressing. An incredible amount of due diligence has been undertaken by Clare County Council, which will take over these sites in County Clare. It has had some difficulties in ascertaining the full financial situation of those sites, but I think it has got to the bottom of it now. It is now at the point that for this to be a success and to fulfil the wish of Government in summer 2021, Clare County Council has asked for a funding lump sum. On 18 December, the day Deputy Varadkar become the Taoiseach, I spoke to Ministers as we gathered in Leinster House who assured me that funding was coming for the transfer. The funding offer came two or three days later and it was under €3 million, well short of the €15 million asked for in the region. Every round of negotiations and every meeting of this interdepartmental group seems to take weeks and weeks to convene and to report back. We want a conclusion. These are tourism sites. They have already missed out on some key bookings and some coach companies have cancelled on them. The fear is that the lead-in to the summer 2023 season may already be passed. They need some certainty.