John Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I made my farewell speech in the House last week but with so many people out canvassing, I was wheeled back in again tonight. Coming from Enniscorthy, I grew up with the songs and stories of 1798 and 1916 and it is appropriate that I would say a few words on the motion. Fianna Fáil will support it if we get the opportunity to vote on it tomorrow night but that is unlikely.

The upcoming centenary of 1916 marks an important milestone in the history of our republic. The Easter Rising defined us as a country. It belongs to no party but to the people of Ireland. Even in my county, some historians would like to rewrite the history of 1916 but the British, French and Germans all celebrate historical events such as this and this is our opportunity to celebrate, 100 years later, the significant role played by the brave men and women of 1916. We should not apologise for that. It is an important political occasion to reflect upon our successes as nation in the face of seemingly impossible odds and to examine those of our shortcomings that history demands should be addressed. It is also a poignant personal moment for families whose relatives served in the Rising. I am sure every Member receives the same representations but almost every day, a huge number of people contact my office in Wexford in the hope that they can attend the celebrations in Dublin on the day. Some family members of those involved in 1916 have been invited while others have been left out in the cold. Some left it a little late to apply for tickets. However, I had a discussion with the Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach, Deputy Kehoe, earlier. The Government should consider late applications from direct descendants and allow them to attend the celebrations, particularly in Dublin.

The Moore Street area is a central part of our historic heritage and should be appropriately preserved and developed to mark the 100th anniversary of 1916. The Government has bought 14 to 17 Moore Street but there is serious controversy over plans for the site and the surrounding area, which is owned by a private developer. We fear the area risks continued dereliction and decline. Fianna Fáil proposed a Temple Bar-type company with the power to create and develop a fitting historic quarter. This would be a much more effective mechanism to secure and revitalise the area appropriately. The historic buildings associated with the 1916 Rising at 14 to 17 Moore Street are in a state of great disrepair and the Minister said they would be brought up to the required standard. The entire Moore Street area was under the ownership of NAMA and the care of Chartered Land before a significant amount was recently sold. The original plans for the area should have ensured that it would be developed, that the traders would be protected and that there would be an economic plan for the area. This has not happened.

It was the last headquarters of the Provisional Government of the Irish Republic during the Rising. Volunteers broke into houses on Moore Street and tunnelled their way through the terrace and took up new positions in each house, making No. 16 their headquarters. As many as 300 Irish Volunteers and members of Cumann na mBan escaped to the buildings from the GPO after it caught fire following a bombardment by British artillery during Easter week 1916. The buildings were designated national monuments in 2007 by the then Minister for the Environment, Mr. Dick Roche. As a national monument, the Minister has a duty to ensure the buildings do not descend into permanent decay.

The Moore Street area has been neglected by the Government parties since they came to office. They have failed to bring forward an economic plan to revitalise the area, they failed to create a business environment, they failed to look after the Moore Street traders who have been part and parcel of Dublin for generations. I would like the Minister to serious re-examine what is proposed. I come from Enniscorthy where there will be a full year of celebrations. There will be re-enactments. We have had a school programme which featured the names of Galligan, Weafer, Rafter, Etchingham and Brennan. Every year, Sinn Féin and Fianna Fáil hold commemorative events. Next Sunday, Fianna Fáil will celebrate the life and times of Liam Mellows. As far back as I can remember, we have had celebrations in Easter Monday in the cathedral in Enniscorthy followed by a parade to Market Square and the laying of wreaths at the monument to Fr. Murphy and the people of 1798.

We have monuments also to Captain Thomas Weafer and Captain Seamus Rafter and we are very proud of the historic significance of the Easter celebrations. In 1994 and 1995 when, perhaps, it was not popular to do so, our then chairman, Mr. Peter Byrne, who has since retired from politics, invited the Deputy First Minister, Martin McGuinness, to Enniscorthy as part of the 1916 celebrations. It was not very popular at the time but it was a forerunner to the celebrations and the Good Friday Agreement. Enniscorthy is proud of leading the way in that regard. We contend that the tricolour was flown for the first time in Enniscorthy. Some people contend it was flown for the first time in Waterford. We will continue to fight that issue with the people of Waterford. From Easter Sunday 2016, the tricolour will fly over Enniscorthy for generations to come in a specific glass casket that will protect it.

Returning to the motion, it is important that the Minister revisit Moore Street and the surrounding areas. In recent years NAMA has sold property to large developers, foreign developers and UK developers not only in Dublin, but around the country, when it could have been more appropriately used for local people and the people of Dublin. I ask the Minister to reconsider the situation and to revisit the issues called for in the motion. I know she has assigned to herself some of the celebrations and some of the good work she has done in this area. The people of the area want to see more of the properties around Nos. 14-17 Moore Street secured and developed in a different way for the people of Dublin and not for the big developers and those who would sell it on for massive profits in the future.

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