Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 111:

In page 62, to delete lines 13 and 14 and substitute the following: “15.(1)This Act shall not operate to restrict or otherwise affect the functions of a Minister of the Government or the Commissioners under the National Monuments Acts 1930 to 2014 or the Historic and Archaeological Heritage and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023.

(2)The performance by a Minister of the Government of functions under this Act shall not operate to prejudice the performance by that Minister of the Government of functions under the National Monuments Acts 1930 to 2014 or the Historic and Archaeological Heritage and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023.

(3)The performance by the Commissioners of functions under this Act shall not operate to prejudice the performance by the Commissioners of functions under the National Monuments Acts 1930 to 2014 or the Historic and Archaeological Heritage and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023.”.

Deputies Ó Broin, Ó Snodaigh, and Gould have proposed an amendment to amendment No. 111. This proposed amendment is not considered necessary or workable. In short, it is not clear what the intention is behind the addition of the term “or the provisions of” in subsection (3) and if accepted, that subsection of the proposed amendment becomes fragmented and unclear.

In addition, the term “or the provisions of” does not feature in any other section of the Bill and while the Deputies’ proposal is surely well-intentioned, I cannot accept it for these reasons.

Section 15 of the Bill, which mirrors section 260 of the Act of 2000, ensures that the functions of the Minister under the National Monuments Acts 1930 to 2014 are not restricted or prejudiced by the enacted Bill.

Amendment No. 111 is straightforward in that it is being introduced to provide for the recent enactment of the Historic and Archaeological Heritage and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023. Given the anticipated phased commencement of that Act, it is important that section 15 of the Bill is restructured to make references to both the historic and archaeological heritage Act and the National Monuments Acts. The commissioners of public works in Ireland have a range of important functions to perform under the Historic and Archaeological Heritage Act, such as having responsibility for the preservation and maintenance of monuments in the ownership or guardianship of the Minister, and it is for this reason they are specified alongside the Ministers of the Government in Amendment No. 111.

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