Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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13. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht her plans for the Moore Street area, Dublin 1, in the wake of her announcement of 31 March 2015; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16824/15]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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As I outlined in my replies to today’s Priority Questions No 1 and 2, my primary function in this case arises from the Preservation Order that was placed on Nos. 14 - 17 Moore Street under the National Monuments Acts in 2007 in order to protect No. 16 as the site of the final council of war and final headquarters of the Leaders of the 1916 Rising. The area surrounding the Moore Street national monument is largely in private ownership, is not covered by the provisions of the National Monuments Acts and is the subject of a grant of full planning permission by An Bord Pleanála. Dublin City Council has statutory responsibility under the Planning and Development Acts for all planning and development matters in the area.

With regard to the national monument itself, the position is that that the Preservation Order requires the consent of the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht to be obtained for any works affecting the monument buildings. After extensive deliberations, Ministerial consent was given to the owners in April 2014 for the creation of a 1916 Commemorative Centre in the monument buildings, involving the full repair and restoration of the structures, both internally and externally.

Proposals that subsequently went before Dublin City Council late last year would have allowed the exchange of two modern 1990s buildings at Nos. 24 and 25 Moore Street, currently used as a cleansing depot, in return for full ownership of Nos. 14 - 17 being transferred to the City Council. The transfer would have been accompanied by NAMA funding to cover the full cost of the restoration project and the proposed commemorative centre. I was disappointed that Dublin City Councillors rejected these plans, which I believe provided a real opportunity to have the restoration work completed and the commemorative centre open in time for the centenary of the Rising in 2016.

However, in order to ensure the long-term future of the national monument, I have secured the approval of the Government for it to be acquired by the State. This will bring the national monument into public ownership and secure its long-term future. It will also facilitate the safeguarding and restoration of the buildings, and the development of the proposed 1916 Commemorative Centre to be run as a public facility.

My own Department and the other parties involved are working to bring these matters forward as speedily as possible and I will be reverting to Government in the coming weeks with final proposals in this regard.