Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 1: To ask the Taoiseach if he has asked the British Prime Minister to develop a mechanism whereby Irish historical artefacts stolen, confiscated or used in historical court cases will be returned to Ireland, the families of those who owned them or to the National Museum or National Library. [41724/09]

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy will be aware that the archives and museums of the world are replete with treasures of diverse cultures, quite often displaced in uncertain circumstances from their point of origin.

Although the Deputy's inquiry is not specific to any particular item of interest, the aspiration is expressly towards an arrangement between Britain and Ireland. I agree that our intertwined national histories, most especially in the modern era, have left a tremendous number of items relating to Ireland and of significant historical interest in official and private collections throughout Britain and Ireland. The priority considerations in respect of such material must be towards preservation and, where possible, public access.

Although some might wish that every significant artefact of our national heritage could be included among the Irish national collections, I am satisfied with the cordial relations that permit artefacts to be moved on loan between collections from time to time for special exhibition purposes.

The issues raised by the Deputy relating to the provenance and acquisition of items in collections and archives are specific to each case and cannot be addressed as a totality.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Taoiseach for his reply. I recently inquired about the Roger Casement artefacts, many of which were confiscated by the British in raids on his flat in 1914. These artefacts were never used in a subsequent court case and are not, therefore, part of the courts service and should be returned to his family. A volume of material relating to Ireland remains in the possession of the British. I ask the Taoiseach to request the British Prime Minister to have undertaken a trawl of the public records office, the courts service or its equivalent in Britain, and the British museum for material which was confiscated or stolen during various raids in Ireland, in particular during the modern period of the last century.

An example would be documents used in court cases against Eamon de Valera, the founder of Fianna Fáil and former Sinn Féin leader. It was said at the time that what was taken was seditious material. However, a number of documents taken when IRA volunteers or Sinn Féin members were arrested in the 1916-1923 period were not subsequently used and should be returned to the families concerned or to this State. Given our plans to roll out a commemoration of that period, these artefacts would be useful in terms of our preparations in this regard.

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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All I can do is ask the relevant authorities to make inquiries about these matters. There are various conventions in place in respect of such matters. We have not yet ratified the two main conventions in this area. The general scheme of the monuments Bill, which is in the process of being submitted to Government by the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, contains heads in regard to the ratification of those two conventions. The property rights of families and individuals must be respected. Where property rightly belongs to a person or family, Governments must respect this, and where there are artefacts in cultural or other institutions abroad, it is open to our national cultural institutions to seek material for exhibition purposes. The London Metropolitan Police will provide on loan to the National Museum some time after Christmas a sword belonging to Roger Casement. These loans are made on the basis that the property will be returned.

The Deputy has mentioned some specific items. If there are other specific items he has in mind, I will arrange for the relevant national cultural institution to respond directly to him.