Ciarán Lynch (Cork South Central, Labour)

I commend Deputy McLellan on bringing this timely motion before the House. This is the Deputy's first time to bring forward a motion and I say well done to her on her choice of subject.

I commend the family members associated with the motion. I had the opportunity to invite them to attend a meeting of a joint committee to discuss this issue and in my input to this debate I would like to reflect some of the comments they made on that occasion.

I have known the names of the signatories of the 1916 Proclamation off by heart since I was a child. That is not because I was a good history student as a child but because I come from the parish of Ballyphelane where the name of every road is called after the signatories of the Proclamation. There is Pearse Road, Clarkes Road, Ceannt Road and, fittingly, I come from Connolly Road. That shows that when we mark significant events in our history in our local neighbourhoods, they have an impact in our formative years.

It is in the context of the parish of Ballyphelane and the names of the signatories to the Proclamation assigned to the roads there that I would like to give some context to the motion. The Sinn Féin motion and the Government's counter amendment to it are very much saying the same thing. They refer to the preservation of Nos. 14 to 17 Moore Street. When republican issues are discussed, the first thing on the agenda is a split but, unusually, there might not necessarily be a split on this issue this evening. I urge both sides of the House to come together on this.

The Sinn Féin motion is limited in its scope. I would like 1916 to be commemorated nationally and far broader than in the context of Nos. 14 to 17, Moore Street. That is the way the commemoration of it should be developed. The events of 1916 had ramifications for the whole of this island. Deputy Nolan mentioned Galway and my great grandfather was involved with Roger Casement in Kerry. He was a Kerry man. That is a hard thing for a Cork man to admit but he has a strong Republican tradition in Rock Street in Tralee.

Dublin City Council has failed time and again to do something with Moore Street. On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of 1916 something could have been done, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary there was an opportunity to do something and on the 90th anniversary, only a few years ago, when the dogs were literally eating the cheques in this country and there was plenty of money to do something nothing was done. What we have seen, not only in Moore Street but in all the area north of O'Connell Bridge, has been the development of a type of honky-tonk, pop-up retail concept that has not been in the interests of the capital city. There is usually some ambiance or nuance to a capital city that captures people's minds. I am proud to say that if one comes to Cork City, we have the English Market and other events - Dublin does not have that type of concept.

It is on that basis I make a few points that I believe reflect the position of some of the descendents. The planning proposal being considered is flawed and I do not believe it will come to pass. The retail model presented in the planning application is something of the past. We should consider putting in place a different type of retail model in the environs of Moore Street, one with rent controls that would allow indigenous companies and manufacturers to sell their wares in the greater Moore Street area. It would give Dublin City centre a flavour and ambiance that the citizens would like to have in their capital city. By extending the commemorative process to the battlefield site and other areas, we would have a different type of 1916 celebration that would not be confined to only four buildings.

What I propose, if all-party agreement could be reached on this, is that we not only consider Nos. 14 to 17 Moore Street in this context but that we look at how we want to see Dublin city centre commemorate 1916 not only in terms of the past but in terms of our vision for its future. Having big supermarkets in the middle of the our capital city is not our vision for the development of the city, rather we want to have a more sustainable business and retail model. I saw plans for a proposal to imprint on the street a bronze copy of the proclamation the size of the Chamber so local and Irish citizens and foreign visitors walking up and down could see and feel the proclamation itself. Commemorating 1916 is not only about now, but also about the future and many positive opportunities can be achieved through cross-party co-operation, because 1916 is part of all our heritage and does not belong to an individual party or Member of the House. This is also an opportunity to revitalise this part of Dublin, which should have been done long ago.

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