Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

1209. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if the 1926 census can be viewed before its release in 2026 (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [54098/18]

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I am aware that the 1926 Census is the next full set of Census records available to the State following the 1911 returns. The 1926 Census was the first undertaken by the independent State, just four years after the Treaty was signed and three years after the Civil War. I understand that this is a historic collection of great value and interest for historians, researchers, the general public and the Diaspora.

Census collection and census records are provided for in the Statistics Act 1993. Responsibility for this legislation falls under the aegis of the Department of the Taoiseach. Under sections 33 and 35 of that Act, information gathered by the Census which relates either directly or indirectly to an identifiable person cannot be released until 100 years after the date of the relevant census.

I have been informed that making the 1926 Census available to the public will require a significant volume of work which will involve both the conservation and the digitisation of the data in the individual 1926 Census forms. This will take several years. Nevertheless, I hope that it will be ready for public release at the end of the statute period in 2026.

I am pleased to advise that my Departments website, www.irishgenealogy.iecontains Civil Records of Births over 100 years old, Marriages over 75 years old and Deaths over 50 years old. It is also possible to search for death records from that period onwww.irishgenealogy.ie. There is also a feedback mechanism on the website along with plenty of useful advice and tips to assist in carrying out searches on the website.