Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

A comprehensive assessment has already been carried out as part of the application for consent under the National Monuments Acts for the proposed restoration of the buildings and the provision of a 1916 commemorative centre on the Moore Street national monument site. The methodology for the assessment was drawn up and agreed in advance by my Department's national monuments service and by the director of the National Museum of Ireland. The assessment was carried out by an eminent archaeologist and historian. I am satisfied with the quality and results of the research. I do not propose to seek any further assessment of the area.

I am disappointed that Dublin City Council decided not to support the proposal that recently went before it, whereby the council would exchange two modern 1990s buildings at Nos. 24 and 25 Moore Street, currently used as a cleansing depot, in return for full ownership of the national monument at Nos. 14 to 17 being transferred to the city council. The transfer would have been accompanied by NAMA funding to cover the full cost of the restoration project and the proposed commemorative centre for which consent was given under the National Monuments Acts in April 2014. I believe the proposal provided a real opportunity to have the project completed and the commemorative centre open in time for the centenary of the Rising in 2016.

Following the decision to reject the proposal, it is now a matter for the City Council and the monument owners to consider the implications for the national monument buildings, for the NAMA funding for the restoration project and for the centenary commemorations in 2016. The granting of the consent under the National Monuments Acts in April 2014 essentially completed my Department’s functions in this case. I will, however, continue to support all appropriate initiatives to secure the restoration of the national monument, consistent with my statutory function under the National Monuments Acts and with the roles and responsibilities of the other interested parties. In that context, tomorrow morning I will meet the members of Dublin City Council’s Moore Street advisory committee to go through the process with them and to encourage them to try to advance a solution that would see the restoration project proceeding.

Responsibility for planning and development of the area outside the bounds of the national monument at Nos. 14 to 17 Moore Street rests with the planning authority, Dublin City Council.

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