Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein)
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335. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if he will provide a breakdown of the current and capital allocation in the 2014 budget for national parks; and the amount allocated to each national park [6742/14]

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein)
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336. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if he will provide an evidence-based breakdown of visitor numbers for each individual national park; and the estimated value of these visitors to the local economy. [6743/14]

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein)
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337. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if any services have been outsourced in any of the national parks since 2010; and the plans under consideration for the outsourcing of services within any of the national parks in 2014. [6744/14]

Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North-West Limerick, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 335 to 337, inclusive, together.

Current funding is allocated within the National Parks and Wildlife Service of my Department on the basis of functional regions, rather than to specific National Parks. These regions operate a parks management programme, including the operation of key visitor attractions, on this basis. My Department is at present finalising arrangements for the allocation of its 2014 current provision.

A programme of capital works is also undertaken in National Parks each year, subject to available resources, in order to secure the conservation of our natural heritage and to provide for its enjoyment by the visiting public. Funding allocations in respect of 2014, which are being finalised at present, will include provision to enhance access to the parks and to improve facilities, such as walking and cycling routes, enhanced signage and interpretation, at these properties so that they can be enjoyed by as many people as possible.

In recent years, my Department has provided modern visitor centres at Ballycroy National Park, Co. Mayo, and Clara Bog Nature Reserve, Co. Offaly, as well as a visitor information point for the Burren National Park in Corofin, Co. Clare.

Killarney House in Killarney National Park is currently undergoing major refurbishment to transform it into the main visitor and interpretative centre for the park with a focus on interpreting the park’s natural wealth. This is a major project for my Department and involves collaboration with OPW, as project managers, and Fáilte Ireland, which has committed funding of €5.2 million towards the project under its Tourism Investment Programme.

In general, my Department seeks to support the greater use of our National Parks in a manner which is compatible with conservation and protection of their biodiversity while supporting economic renewal through sustainable tourism. While it can be difficult to give an exact number of visitors to National Parks as there are many, often remote, access points to the parks, overall visitor numbers have been estimated to be in excess of 2 million per annum. My Department installed a number of visitor counters in the National Parks in 2013 and it is hoped that these will assist in providing enhanced information on visitor numbers in future years.

While core services in the National Parks have not been outsourced by my Department to date, I am currently reviewing this issue in light of the pressures on the funding available to me in recent years. I recognise, however, that my Department’s network of National Parks and Nature Reserves is a major element of Ireland’s tourism attraction. I will be taking all possible steps, therefore, to ensure that the unique qualities of our natural heritage continue to play a significant role in enhancing and projecting Ireland’s image abroad, and in supporting economic renewal through cultural and heritage tourism and in downstream opportunities, such as in the retail, catering and accommodation sectors.