Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North-West Limerick, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate and compliment the Senators on the standard of the debate. I have found it very informative and in my response I will mention a few ideas which I will put in place. I thank the Senators for their sincerity and honesty.

I stated at the beginning my vision is to have a debate which will be tolerant, inclusive and respectful of everybody, and this is something we can all share and enjoy together. There is no reason whatsoever to be in any way divisive about the debate. Everything possible is being done to ensure the commemoration is carried out properly. Other activities which I have not referred to here will also take place. Everybody is invited to participate and it is up to them whether they want to do so. It is up to the media as to whether they report these activities, and the media have a very important role to play. The tone of the debate was generally positive and I thank the Senators for this.

I agree with Senator O Murchú's vision for Ireland and on how we can be informed by the decade of commemorations to enhance this vision and what people mean by "Gaelic Ireland" and how we can foster it in the sense of the European Union and the world order at present, and how very important it is that we express our Irishness now was much as ever.

This debate can inform that overall vision, which Senator Ó Murchú expands on better than most.

The Senator mentioned something that was important, that being, involving the relatives of the 1916 GPO figures. Mr. Maurice O'Keeffe, an historian from County Kerry whom Senator O'Sullivan would know well, commenced a series of interviews with relatives of those who fought in 1916. There were approximately 2,000 people out, as they say, in 1916, 1,800 men and 200 women. We are focusing on those who fought in the GPO and their families. Mr. O'Keeffe has conducted 90 good interviews. We will bring the people in question together in Dublin Castle in November. They are from all political persuasions. Their families might have been in contact previously, but never have they all met at the same time. We are holding the event to recognise them and to ensure a spirit of inclusiveness whereby everyone can sit down around the table, discuss 1916 and feel a part of it.

I was delighted to be able to meet the 1916-21 Club and I hope to work closely with it while in this job.

The fleadh cheoil of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann is one of the country's great bridge builders. I am not being patronising when I say that Senator Ó Murchú's organisation does a significant amount of work. I am pursuing an arts in education programme. We have a charter. In terms of those schools around the country that promote the arts, Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann is one of the most active organisations. In the school just up the road from me, every child from second class to sixth class can play an instrument. By sixth class, children can play five instruments because people like Mr. Willie Larkin provide a service to the school through Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann. That is some achievement.

I agree with the Senator that organising the fleadh cheoil in Derry was the right decision. Concerns were raised about security, but I am convinced that it will be a resounding success. I look forward to joining the Senator in the North with my counterpart in Northern Ireland, Carál Ní Chuilín, and other interested parties.

A number of Senators mentioned Moore Street. As they know, 14-17 Moore Street is a national monument. My decision will be on whether the proposal is a proper one and whether it interferes with the national monument. The deliberations, the environmental impact assessment and the environmental impact statement have been conducted and I have received advice from the National Museum. I will make a final decision shortly as I do not want to allow the situation to drag on. It will be my decision. I will listen to reasonable people, but I will not be influenced by any extreme view. I will take my decision to the Cabinet, which I am sure will accept it.

In terms of the site's history, it is important to point out that the former Minister, Mr. Dick Roche, designated 14-17 Moore Street as a national monument. In 1999, planning permission was granted to demolish the entire site, including the battlefield and the monument. Our respect for the men and women of 1916 has come on a great deal. The current planning permission, which was granted by Dublin City Council and An Bord Pleanála, allows for the demolition of the rest of the site, including the battlefield and O'Rahilly's area of retreat. He was a Kerryman like Senator O'Sullivan and me. I have close contact with the O'Rahilly family. I had nothing to do with the decision of Dublin City Council and An Bord Pleanála, as it pertains to the site beyond 14-17 Moore Street. People do not fully understand the decision that I must make - it is on the monument, not the rest of the site, in respect of which a decision has already been made. The cohesive influence of our cultural identity is important.

Senator Noone made a good contribution. As a young Senator, she sees the relevance of the decade of commemorations in informing people of her generation about the respect we should have for those who gave their lives for our freedom and the sacrifices they made. When they signed the Proclamation, they were undoubtedly signing their lives away.

The Senator also referred to thematic issues and identified the role of women. The suffragette movement was strong in 1913. Even as Redmond was trying to gain home rule for Ireland, he was being attacked by the suffragettes. His bust was defaced with paint by a suffragette. He had nearly achieved home rule and the suffragettes were campaigning for the vote. It is worth remembering that, irrespective of class, creed, race and so on, no woman in the UK or Ireland had a vote in the House of Commons. Thanks to the Suffragette movement, any woman over 30 years of age could vote in the 1918 election. The first woman elected to the House of Commons was Constance Markievicz, although she did not take her seat. Approximately 12 women ran for election. She was an extraordinary woman and I hope that her role up to 1926 will be fully recognised.

Apart from the Suffragette movement, the founding of Cumann na mBan in April 1914 was a significant development. It was one of the country's largest organisations. It was founded as an ally for the Volunteers rather than a support mechanism. Its members were active and wanted to be involved in the overall movement, which they were during the 1916 Rising. It is important that we recognise the fact that some of those involved in founding Cumann na mBan were very strong women. I have put in place a group under Dr. Mary McAuliffe of UCC and the Women's History Association of Ireland. We want to show the courage of and considerable role played by these women. The group is in place and a significant event will be held to recognise them next April.

Senator Noone also mentioned the military service pensions archive. It is an exciting prospect. I advise every Senator to visit the Bureau of Military History, which holds 2,000 testaments. If Senators want to understand the history of the time, they should read those testaments. I am fascinated by them and read them whenever I get a chance. They are available online. For example, I have read about people like Ernest Blythe, the organisation of the volunteers in my home county of Kerry, his joining of the Gaelic League, how he came from County Antrim to learn Irish and became friendly with Seán O'Casey, how he became involved in the Irish Republican Brotherhood, IRB, and his connection with the volunteers. It is an amazing story.

Or take a person like Eoghan Mac Neill, whose story is very understated in our history, and who was very much involved in setting up the Gaelic League with Douglas Hyde. His name is on the poster for the Volunteers, along with that of Kettle. He was the person most responsible for setting up the Volunteers and had amazing organisational ability. At that stage, he was professor of early medieval history in UCD so he was a man who did not have to do this. He did it, however, and later became a Minister.