Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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My Department's National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), manages a property portfolio in respect of national parks and reserves of approximately 87,000 hectares. These important biodiversity areas are located all around the country. The current focus of capital investment within the National Parks and Nature Reserves, is on managing existing Parks and Reserves' lands, as well as upgrading visitor and trails facility as part of Experiencing the Wild Heart of Ireland a Tourism Interpretative Master Plan for the National Parks and Reserves. As the Deputy is already aware, my Department has no direct role in the sale process of the estate in question as it is a commercial matter between the owners of the property and any parties interested in the purchase. While the estate in question would be a significant addition to my Department’s stock of publicly owned heritage lands, I could only consider acquiring this property if the price fell to within a certain range,or in the context of a donation or bequest. This is known to the vendors. In this context, In 2016, my Department negotiated the extension of Wicklow Mountains National Park by purchasing almost 4,900 acres of Dublin Uplands at Glenasmole at a cost of just €800,000.

Wicklow Mountains National Park and Glendalough are amongst our most beloved and popular heritage jewels. The Estate referred to in the details supplied has allowed a permissive access to a hugely popular walking route for many decades and I would hope that this would continue under any new ownership arrangements. My Department has conveyed this directly to the vendors and their agent. Furthermore, the estate has been an excellent neighbour to the National Park, working closely with it on habitat management and the promotion of our stunning Wicklow Mountains for tourism, film-making and amenity. It would like for this close co-operation to continue in future.