Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Tuesday, 20 October 2015
Joint Oireachtas Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht
National Library of Ireland: Chairperson Designate
3:45 pm
Fiach MacConghail (Independent)
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The National Library faces two big issues. One is employment restrictions. How many keeper positions are unfilled, which the National Library is restricted from filling? They are key positions. The second is storage. Will Mr. Shovlin enumerate for the committee how bad the storage facilities are and give us a couple of examples? Is any of the library's material in danger of being destroyed or damaged or, indeed, being inaccessible to researchers?
Has the section 1003 tax incentive been used recently by the National Library for acquisition? I understand there might be commercial sensitivities about it but is it something to which the library has access?
Mr. Shovlin has much experience in the commercial world. He has also served on the board. In terms of diversifying funding, can he give us an assessment of the fund-raising climate he sees in both Ireland and the US in respect of helping him to diversify the funding?