Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the return to State care of the paintings which were stolen from somewhere in storage in the State, particularly that of Valentine Browne, the first Earl of Kenmare. These paintings which hung in Killarney House, not Muckross House as was inaccurately reported, have been recovered, having been offered for auction at Adams. They were stolen and sold in London at Bonhams. It is thanks to the Brownes that we have today the full 26,000 acre Killarney National Park, our foremost national park. Major reconstruction work is taking place at Killarney House. The Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Jimmy Deenihan, intends that a room in that house will be dedicated to the memory of the Brownes, the Earls of Kenmare. That is part of our history. That is where some of the paintings hung and I hope they will be returned to the house with some of the other furniture which belonged in that house when it is reopened, I hope, in 2014. I commend everyone involved in the recovery of the paintings. I do not know when or from where they were stolen but they have been recovered, thanks to good detective work on the part of some good State servants whom I commend because the paintings are an important part of our treasure.