Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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Yesterday marked the centenary of the publication of James Joyce's Ulysses. It is an event that deserves to be commemorated and recognised by this State. Over the past ten years, we have engaged with a lot of commemoration in terms of the important historic political events we have commemorated, including the commemoration of the Irish involvement in the First World War, the Easter Rising of 1916, the meeting of the First Dáil in 1919 and the War of Independence. All of those are commendable, political, military events that deserve to be commemorated. However, we cannot just view the progress of the Irish State in terms of political or military developments. It is very important we recognise the publication of Ulysses, the centenary of which took place yesterday. International commentary on the events I have outlined shows the event that got much more commentary and recognition was the publication of Ulyssesby James Joyce. Recognition for that goes to Sylvia Beach and Shakespeare and Company in Paris, which published the book in 1922. Let it be clear, that book would not have been published in Ireland. There was great difficulty getting it published anywhere. Ms Beach and Shakespeare and Company deserve recognition.

What Joyce delivered was a remarkable literary achievement. The study of Ulyssesand the works of James Joyce have gone through an extraordinary transformation over the past 40 to 50 years. Forty to 50 years ago, Joyce was regarded as a bit of an intellectual oddity. That has changed significantly now. We can now see he was one of the great literary figures of the 20th century. Literature probably was the dominant art form in that century and James Joyce was its Michelangelo. We should be extremely proud he was an Irishman and, as I am, extremely proud he was a Dubliner.

We need to note that James Joyce's work is not just of benefit and use for those who are literary scholars. Every year, huge numbers of tourists come to Dublin because they have an interest in James Joyce and his works. We need to recognise where the State is failing in its duty to commemorate and support that memory of James Joyce. There are some events which are protected, including the James Joyce Centre, which a Member of the Houses of the Oireachtas has been instrumental in protecting over the years, and the James Joyce Institute. The State should be doing much more. I will give a couple of examples. I refer to James Joyce House on Usher's Quay, where The Dead, one of his great stories, is based. We seem to be acting as bystanders in looking at that house. We need to recognise it is an important part of Joyce's history and Irish history that deserves to be preserved. In Sandycove, there is the James Joyce Tower, in respect of which the State has played a very limited role. That should be a shrine to James Joyce and something we, as a State, should value it immensely. A couple of years ago when I was a member of Dublin City Council we had a huge task of work to ensure Sweny's chemist on Westland Row remained open because of a rates bill that was being imposed on it.

As a State, we need to do more to commemorate and protect the memory of James Joyce and his literary works. I would be interested to know what the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media has planned to ensure that occurs. I look forward to hearing the response of the Minister of State.

Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputy O'Callaghan for raising this very topical and interesting issue. As the Deputy will know, the centenary of the publication ofUlysses is arguably one of the most important literary centenaries in the history of the State, and while this year we celebrate the 100th anniversary of a great book about Dublin by, as mentioned by Deputy O'Callaghan, a great Dublin writer, it is also a huge moment in international writing.

The Government is providing a range of supports to commemorate this iconic publication at home and abroad. The Department of Foreign Affairs, keenly aware of the importance of Joyce's artistic legacy internationally, is supporting an innovative programme of events around the world with our missions at the centre of many of them. France and Ireland have a strong and historic cultural relationship and, this year, we jointly celebrate the centenary of the publication of Ulyssesin Paris. The Centre Culturel Irlandais, CCI, in Paris is presenting a special five-month season of centenaries, celebrating the centenaries of the publication of Ulyssesand of Irish statehood. This Joyce season, alongside other special initiatives by the embassy in Paris, form the cornerstone of Ireland's Ulysses100 celebrations in France.

At home, the Museum of Literature Ireland has developed a wonderful programme of events, launched yesterday, to mark this special centenary with support from the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media and the Department of Foreign Affairs. TheUlysses100 digital platform developed by the museum will be a fantastic resource and will gather and promote centenary events happening across the globe as well as collecting the centenary for archive and future research. This will make it easier than ever for the public to access information and to find out how they can get involved in the many wonderful and eclectic projects happening throughout the country and the rest of the world.

The hugely ambitious Museum of Literature Ireland Ulysses2.2 project, in association with ANU and Landmark Productions, has been funded by the Arts Council's Open Call award, and represents not just a look back at Ulyssesbut will engage a huge gathering of artists across art forms to look at ourselves today, at a changing and diverse Ireland that is every bit as complex, messy, mischievous and beautiful as Joyce presented it in 1922. Particularly encouraging is the inclusion of young audiences in the Ulysses2.2 programme. The Museum of Literature Ireland is also hosting an exhibition called, Love, says Bloom, which opened yesterday, by author and curator Nuala O'Connor. The James Joyce Centre has a wonderful programme of events to mark this centenary, supported by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media. The programme includes innovative ways of engaging children with this great work and programming and exhibitions which will bring Joyce and Ulyssesto life for so many.

As mentioned by Deputy O'Callaghan, Ulyssesoffers us many tourism opportunities, with visitors keen to walk the streets of Joyce's rich characters and visit those places made iconic by Ulysses. Our rich literary history allows us to promote a unique tourism offering. Dublin was named the seventh best city in the world to visit in 2022 by Lonely Planet, specifically calling out the centenary as a key reason to plan a visit to Dublin in 2022.

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for the reply. I am pleased to hear that progress is being made in terms of the commemoration of Ulysses. I welcome the detail contained with the reply.

It is fair to say James Joyce had a difficult relationship with Ireland. He probably would be surprised that, in a national Parliament, Members are standing up to commemorate the publication of his great book 100 years ago. I do not think he would have envisaged he would have the support and appreciation of the Irish people that is manifested by us all today.

We need to look at doing something bigger to commemorate James Joyce. I ask that the Minister of State would bring some of the following ideas to the attention of the Minister with responsibility for culture. They may be good or bad ideas, and if rejected, I do not mind, but we do need to do something significant to commemorate James Joyce. In travelling around the world one passes through Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris and John F. Kennedy Airport in New York. My first idea is to change the name of Dublin Airport to James Joyce International Airport. It would give a real indication of the appreciation and value we place on a literary figure. It would also be a slight shift of emphasis from a very dignified, historic past where we commemorate people involved in politics or military struggles.

There would also be a certain irony in Dublin Airport, a place from where people leave the country, being named after James Joyce.

I will raise a more contentious issue. I will be interested to hear what people like Deputy Durkan think about this. I went to Zurich a couple of years ago with two friends. We got a tram up the mountain to Fluntern Cemetery. The back of it is a lonely place. You go in through a gate and Joyce's grave is at the back of the graveyard. It is a lonely spot and there are very few other graves around his. When he died, Nora Barnacle was interested in having his body brought back to be buried in Ireland. That is something we should give consideration to. It is a contentious issue and people may disagree with it. Joyce has no family descendants alive to object to it, but we as a country need to give recognition and thought to bringing home our most famous child.

Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy has offered many ideas. As I said, Fáilte Ireland has supported the Bloomsday festival for a number of years. Tourism Ireland has also developed an innovative programme around this particular centenary this year by reaching out to global audiences around the world. As the Deputy said, this momentous centenary is being marked in many different ways, with the support of the Government. Like the Deputy, I look forward to the roll-out of this programme.

He said that Joyce had a difficult relationship with Ireland. The number of people who left over past decades indicates that many of them had a very difficult relationship with Ireland as well. I always had a major interest in Tim Pat Coogan's book, Wherever Green is Worn, and the Irish diaspora, be it in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United Kingdom or the United States. Last night, we saw Celtic, a club I have supported over the years, play Rangers. Celtic's founder, Brother Walfrid, Andrew Kerins, came from Ballymote in my constituency. People like him are equally Irish and feel so.

The idea of James Joyce airport is interesting. We have to look at all the young men and women who have left over the past decades. It could be an idea to remember the people who left through whatever airport, whether it was Knock Airport, Shannon Airport, Cork Airport or Dublin Airport. We must remember that we are in a much better space, but the Deputy's idea is interesting. A James Joyce airport is certainly worthy of consideration.