Micheál Martin (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Ar dtús báire, aontaímid go léir gur institiúid an-tábhachtach é an Gailearaí Náisiúnta agus baineann muintir na tíre an-taitneamh agus tairbhe as an institiúid seo. Caithfimid é sin a chur san áireamh i gcónaí. Ach tá sé an-deacair ar fad é seo a thuiscint. Conas is féidir scanóir a cheannach agus níl aon rud socraithe roimh ré maidir le húsáid an scanóra? Níl sé sásúil in aon chor, agus tá an tAire chun athmhachnamh a dhéanamh ar an gceist go léir. Gabhaim buíochas leis an C and AG agus a fhoireann as seo.

The National Gallery is a very important national institution. People from across the country derive great joy and benefit from it and it hosts many treasures but it is incomprehensible that it would have proceeded under a digitisation scheme to purchase a scanner and not have organised in advance how that scanner would be deployed in terms of a lead-lined room and so on. That is not acceptable. The Comptroller and Auditor General, it is my understanding, has unearthed this. It should be examined fully by the Committee of Public Accounts when that committee is established. It simply is not good enough. The gallery and those responsible have to answer for this.

Since 1998, the National Gallery of Ireland has had an X-ray facility, a film darkroom and wet processing facilities for researching the materials and techniques of its collection. Between 2012 and 2013, the old X-ray equipment, which was housed in a lead-lined room, was decommissioned in preparation for the National Gallery's master development plan to accommodate major on-site changes and infrastructural works. The intention was always to reinstate the X-ray facility but to move to a digital solution. What happened here is that a scheme was developed, a cultural digitisation scheme. The National Gallery of Ireland purchased a digital X-ray system valued at €124,000 but it is quite clear from the annual report that it had not worked how it was going to deploy or locate it and began discussions with the Office of Public Works after the purchase, looking at suitability of locations. That is completely unacceptable. People are right to be angry about it. The Comptroller and Auditor General, as I said, had a key role in that.

That said, while stories and events of this kind make people irate and very angry, we also have to take on board the fact that there have been a lot of good projects. It does not reflect the full picture of public expenditure on many worthy projects in this country. One only has to look at the number of schools, reservoirs and water works that we have built over the last number of years. There is example after example where funding has come in on budget and on time. I have listed before these school buildings, from Edmund Rice College Dublin to the Patrician Academy in Mallow and so forth. The Old Connaught-Woodbrook water supply scheme, Windmill Hill reservoir and the Kilkenny city regional water supply project are all good projects, delivered well and in the interests of people. In the justice area, Fitzgibbon Street Garda Station is providing fit-for-purpose accommodation and Walter Scott House will accommodate up to 900 Garda personnel from the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation. Then there area all the various roles from Castlebaldwin to Listowel.

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