Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Minister for his reply. According to Mr. Peter Cox, vice-president of the International Council on Monuments and Sites, Ireland, every euro invested in heritage returns between €300 and €400 to the Exchequer. Writing recently, Mr. Cox, a man with considerable experience in the field of heritage, stated:

The Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht has now lost a number of senior staff and the few left at this level are so overstretched and underfunded they can no longer promote or protect our national monuments.

It is expected that 60 per cent of senior heritage specialists in the public service will apply to retire in February, which will leave the sector bereft of expertise required to manage national monuments, ordinary heritage and even world heritage sites.

Within five years, cultural tourists will not visit Ireland because our heritage sites will be in poor repair, ill-interpreted and some will have to close because of health and safety restrictions.

I ask the Minister to clarify whether this scenario will be realised. Cultural and heritage tourists spend significant sums in this country. The budget placed a strong emphasis on tourism as a mechanism for job creation and assisting the country in emerging from its current economic difficulties. Will the Minister comment on Mr. Cox's view of the future of the heritage sector given that he is an independent professional working in this area?

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