Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Does the Minister not feel regret and embarrassment at the fact that a key part of Ireland's literary, artistic and cultural history has been sold off to the highest bidder through a London auction room? I recognise the enormous generosity of the Yeats family to Ireland and especially to the National Library of Ireland next door, where Yeats spent a lot of his time.

Yeats spoke of the "fumble in a greasy till". The Minister has thrown out €500,000 here and so on, and there is the value of donations given to the State by the Yeats family. From listening to the Minister's earlier replies she has said she is interested in promoting creativity in the arts. There is no one in the pantheon of Irish writers who speaks more to the whole world than W.B. Yeats. Yet the Minister has presided over a situation where the shameful auction in London is just about to conclude, and for lack of €2 million, which was the reserve price put on the auction contents, the Minister did little or nothing. We can thank her for the bits and pieces she has managed to save but could she not be moved by people such as Michael Longley, Marie Heaney and others who asked the Minister to think again and do this? As Minister she is responsible.

See this speech in context