Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Funding is always an issue for the museum. I will negotiate with the Minister for Finance in respect of my budget for culture this year and how it will be of value to the National Museum of Ireland. As we know, under Project Ireland 2040 significant funding will be invested in the museum. We do not as yet know from the National Museum of Ireland what the detailed plans or costings are for the exhibition, although I believe that it hopes some funding will be available.

As the Deputy will be aware, the National Museum of Ireland has a master development plan and has published a 15-year master vision statement, which may be pertinent to his question, for the period 2018 to 2032 that sets out plans for the transformation of the museum into an institution of international standing. Physical developments throughout the museum site over the next 15 years will be underpinned by three principles: to protect it and provide the best conditions for the care of its collections and access for educational research; to safeguard it and ensure that all the National Museum of Ireland sites are safe and secure for the collections and the public; and to promote accessibility to make the museum's sites, exhibitions and interpretations fully accessible for everyone. It is envisaged that a separate master plan will be developed for each site, underpinned by the principles. The Collins Barracks site, which the Deputy mentioned, will be developed as the headquarters and focal point of all the National Museum of Ireland sites. New galleries will be developed for earth science and world culture, while on-site facilities will be developed to provide improved access to collections. As I outlined, an extension will be added to the Natural History Museum in Merrion Street, while a link will be provided to the museum of archaeology in Kildare Street.

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