Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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49. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht her views on the management of the National Museum of Ireland. [4174/17]

Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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I thought long and hard before raising this question because I do not seek to cast aspersions on any individual in the National Museum of Ireland. I had hoped the Department would grab the bull by the horns on this issue and fix it. The difficulty is there but that has not been the case. Even though we have very good people in the museum and a new chair is on the board and trying to fix it, there are still massive difficulties. The National Museum of Ireland is limping along, hampered and hammered by dysfunction with regard to HR crises over the last 15 years. From the information I have received, it seems the Department does not want to get involved and to fix it.

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The National Cultural Institutions Act 1997 establishes the National Museum of Ireland as an autonomous body. As Minister, I have no involvement in the day-to-day running of the National Museum of Ireland. Section 29 of the Act provides that the director of the museum shall carry on, manage and control generally the administration and business of the museum and perform such other functions as may be determined by the board. The code of practice for the governance of State bodies as published in 2016 sets out the key functions which all State boards should fulfil including reviewing and guiding strategic direction and major plans of action, risk management policies and procedures, annual budgets and business plans, setting performance objectives, monitoring, implementation and State body performance and overseeing major capital expenditure and investment decisions. A board is required to promote the capacity of the State body, including the capability of its leadership and staff, and is also responsible for holding the CEO and senior management to account for the effective performance of their responsibilities.

The National Museum is a valuable part of the cultural heritage of the State. Like all cultural institutions, it suffered during the economic difficulties of recent years, but is now looking to prepare for the future in a strategic fashion. I have been pleased to have been able to increase the resources provided to the board in recent years. The museum has also commissioned a master plan to provide for its future development. This should be a valuable contribution to steering the museum's development in the years to come. I appointed a new board to the museum in June 2016 under a dynamic new chair, Catherine Heaney, and I am confident it has a wide range of skills to address the challenges facing the museum and to ensure that the staff and management continue to deliver an excellent service to the public across the museum's four locations.

Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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I understand that two finance staff of the museum, including the former financial manager, have taken personal injuries cases to the High Court for bullying within the National Museum of Ireland and that these cases were settled out of court by the museum. A finance manager was made redundant recently and the finance department of the museum is now populated mostly with agency staff. It is not good enough for the Minister to build a paper wall between herself and the National Museum of Ireland because this is costing money. Approximately €3,500 is spent every week on agency staff in the finance department alone. Only one member of the finance staff is left there. We also know that over the past number of years a large number of reports and agencies have been involved and that has cost the State massive money. What has been the cost of this dysfunction within the National Museum of Ireland and how many protected disclosures have been received from the National Museum of Ireland by the Minister? Is the Minister happy, given that there is no financial manager there, that the correct governance and financial oversight is in place within the operation?

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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I am very satisfied that the correct governance is in place. There is a board there and the oversight by the board. I cannot interfere with those functions of the museum which are properly those of the board and the director. I cannot get involved in the day-to-day running of the museum. It is not my job to do it and I do not intend to do it. The HR issues to which the Deputy refers are a day-to-day matter for the board and the management of the National Museum of Ireland as an autonomous body.

The new board is in place and I keep in contact with the chair, Catherine Heaney. She is very committed to working to address all of the challenges facing the museum. The museum is not limping along by any means. It welcomed 3.6 million visitors to its four sites last year while 5.5 million visits were made to the National Museum of Ireland website and social media platforms. I note that 10,000 records were placed online while 420,000 people took part in the museum's learning programmes. The museum mounted a wide programme of events including the production of "Pals: the Irish at Gallipoli" with 400 performances seen by 12,000 visitors. It is a very busy place and it is doing well.

Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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I am not casting aspersions. There are some great people there doing great work.

The fact is that I received an internal HR report through an FOI request. It measured six key areas with regard to the level of management. In those areas, the report stated the services were well below average and there were clear psycho-social risks within the workplace in five separate areas, namely, management support, peer support, relationships, role and respondents. The respondents reported in the bottom 20% possible. Some 15% of respondents working there felt things were starting to improve and 18% felt that senior management was trying to do its best.

The report goes on and on, and is damning. It states that many agencies have been in and around the National Museum over the past number of years trying to resolve these issues. I would like to know how much has been spent on those agencies. Will the Minister confirm that a well-known agency dealing with sexual misconduct was employed by the National Museum of Ireland over the past ten to 15 years?

There are really good people there with lots of energy. Imagine if they were liberated by proper management within the National Museum. Imagine the opportunities this country would have if these issues were fixed. It is not good enough for the Minister to hide behind a wall. She should bring these people in, fix the problem and make sure we have a National Museum to be proud of in this country.

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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It is a matter for the board and management of the museum. I am not going to get involved in the day-to-day running of the museum. It is independent in that respect. I understand the chair of the board has been in contact with the Deputy and is keen for engagement, as are the members of the Oireachtas joint committee, in terms of addressing future developments at the museum.

Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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It will not be fixed