Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)

If the release of new material under the 30-year rule was curtailed this year because there was inadequate space to accommodate that fresh material, what is the extent of the withholding? Does it apply to specific Departments? Does it apply as a percentage of material from all Departments or across the various archive field sources? How much material was withheld this year? Has the proposal to create new space now effectively been abandoned because of the issue of affordability? Where will that leave us in ten months' time when another year's tranche of material will be due for release? What measures is the Government taking to address the situation as pointed up by the experience in January of this year?

At present, there is no National Archives Advisory Council, whose term of office concluded in 2007, and no new council was appointed. Is it the responsibility of the Taoiseach or of another Minister to appoint a new National Archives Advisory Council or where stands the Government on such a body? The National Archives of Ireland website, which is still extant, states:

The National Archives Act, 1986 assigned ministerial responsibility for the National Archives to the Taoiseach. However, on 20 January 1993, the National Archives was transferred from the Department of the Taoiseach to the new Department of Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht, which in 1997 was re-named the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands. On 18 June 2002, the National Archives was transferred to the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism.

That Department would have continued with a substantive area of the previous Departments' designation. However, the website continues to state:

Consequently, most of the functions conferred on the Taoiseach by the National Archives Act are now performed by the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism, but the Taoiseach continues to perform certain functions relating to the retention by Departments of Departmental records which are more than 30 years old and the withholding of such records from public inspection.

What are those certain functions? Can the Taoiseach give us a snapshot of his experience in this area in his years as Taoiseach since 2008? Is it his intention to appoint a new National Archives Advisory Council and when does he propose to do so?

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