Results 2,981-3,000 of 9,814 for speaker:Steven Matthews

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: I do not see any hands up and will take the opportunity myself. I do not know who will take the questions I have but ask that the witnesses indicate. It was suggested earlier on that the Department may have suggested that it was not necessary to include Valletta in this legislation. Are we not still bound by the Valletta Convention, even if we do not mention it in this legislation? I say...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: That is one of An Taisce's recommendations. Its submission states: "The ‘Valletta Convention’ should be incorporated and implemented in the proposed legislation."

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: It was just suggested that they said it. I would have to confirm if that is what they said. I am not saying-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: That is just for environmental impact assessments. It would not cover a planning application that does not require EIA.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: I will let you clarify that but I do not want this to become a-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: I want to come back to UNESCO sites for a moment. Management plans were mentioned. Management plans for SACs and various things like that have been called into question previously. Have our management plans for UNESCO sites been the subject of any scrutiny? Who decides whether our management plans for our UNESCO sites are adequate or are being implemented?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: I asked earlier who makes the decision to preserve by record or relocate to some other site. Mr. Swan answered that question but Dr. Clinton seems to disagree with an aspect of that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: I remember this.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: I do not think we need to go down that route. It is well-documented and anybody can look back at the record and see who was Minister when that decision was made. On the question of preserving on-site, I do not understand the process around that. It is up to the Minister to decide whether to preserve this find on-site as it is and move the road, or change the building layout, or whatever it...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: That was the amendment Dr. Clinton referred to earlier. I will let Mr. Swan come in soon but I want to follow on with this question. The suggestion is that if we had an advisory council, it would be the best body to make a determination on what we should do here. Earlier, I asked if we had an advisory body, how busy would it be? How many times would it be called into action? Would it be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: Dr. Johnson has indicated. I will then bring in Dr. Clinton who wishes to comment on this also.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: Does Dr. Clinton wish to come back in on the advisory council duplication comment?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: I think everybody has respect for everybody else’s views here, and this is really assisting us to get this legislation right and to ensure we make proper recommendations. It was mentioned that Northern Ireland is a good example of where an advisory council works. Is Dr. Clinton suggesting the advisory council would be brought in only for potentially exceptional sites, whereby at some...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: The advisory council will be for exceptional cases.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: That clarifies a recommendation-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: To clarify, in respect of An Taisce's recommendation to “re-activate the Monuments Advisory Council, to integrate checks and balances into the proposed legislation”, that recommendation applies only to exceptional sites.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: May I alter that recommendation to reflect Dr. Clinton's response?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: We are almost out of time but I have some questions about the heads of the Bill. They relate to something Deputy Ó Snodaigh asked earlier. Many monuments have no signage and we do not know where they are. In a way, that offers them some protection until something goes wrong. We do not attract heavy footfall to them, we do not need landscape management plans and there is no great...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: Will Parts 8 and 9 provide for that or do we need to be stronger on it? Dr. Greene or any of the other guests can revert to me on that if they wish.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Monuments and Archaeological Heritage Bill: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (3 Feb 2022)

Steven Matthews: We will now hear from Dr. Johnson, followed by Mr. Swan and then Dr. Greene.