Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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Question 147: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the arrangements which are in place to make current maps available in the Land Registry office in either hard or digital formats; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7611/06]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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I am informed by the Registrar of Titles that the register of titles managed by the Land Registry currently covers about 2.4 million parcels of land. The boundaries of these titles are marked and maintained by the Land Registry on map sheets published by Ordnance Survey Ireland. Since the organisation was established in 1892, these Land Registry maps, now numbering about 32,000 active sheets, have been kept exclusively in paper format.

I am also informed that these Land Registry map sheets are available for inspection within the public offices of the Land Registry between the statutory public office hours of 10.30 a.m. and 4.30 p.m., Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays, on payment of a fee of €2.50, as prescribed by land registration fees order.

I am further informed that maintaining and providing access to these unique maps in paper format carries certain limitations and overheads and a programme is currently underway to convert the entire map base into digital maps. Contracts to digitise the existing paper map record and to build a new computer system for storing, maintaining and processing the new digital maps were awarded in June 2005. The development, testing and implementation of the new computerised digital mapping system is now nearing completion and the projected "go live" date is 28 April 2006. At that stage, customers of the Land Registry who subscribe to the office's on-line system known as the electronic access service, EAS, will, for the first time, be able to view the Land Registry maps for the entire country on-line and conduct electronic inspections and associated index inquiries. Access will also be provided for customers who visit the public offices operated by the Land Registry.

This project also includes a programme to digitise each of the registered boundaries of the 2.4 million or so parcels of land registered in the Land Registry. This is a considerable undertaking, which will take an estimated five years to complete. However, the work is already well underway and the first county — Westmeath — is expected to be complete by 28 April 2006.

The Land Registry also maintains maps of individual registered land parcels known as "filed plans". Originally, these documents were maintained as paper records only. However, as a result of a major programme of computerisation between 2001 and 2004, these documents were converted into electronic format and have, since then, been available to customers of the Land Registry who use the EAS. It is also possible to order official copies of these filed plans and other Land Registry records on-line through the EAS, by post and through attendance at the public offices.