Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I realise, appreciate and acknowledge that the Minister of State is an honest broker. I would not like to think that I might be observed as a dishonest broker. I am an elected public representative for the area. I convey the views to the House that people have conveyed to me. That is the position that any public representative has. I specifically ask if the Minister of State will meet with a group who see themselves as protectors of the house, with justification, and the county council, all together, so at least all the constituent parties can be under the one roof with their feet under the table at the same time in order to establish what has not been established over the last 12 months, which is progress. Progress is needed now, lest the situation become a long-term issue, which it very well can.

The State is an owner of the property. The OPW owns the property of 230 acres, including the house, gardens and land. The State is as much entitled to defend its own right to access and egress as anybody else is. It is just one group of two.

In this case, the local people have no difficulty in acknowledging the right to accommodate the adjoining landowner, provided the State has access. The OPW has ambitious plans for the area - up to 1 million people are to pass through on an annual basis and a huge contribution towards employment and local cultural organisations, etc. Will the Minister try to arrange a meeting with the local groups and the county council with the local authority chief executive?

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