Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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1297. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if a list of the protected structures in Columb Barracks, Mullingar, County Westmeath will be provided; the details of suggestions to amend the records; and the date of the most recent survey carried out by the national inventory of architectural heritage. [9532/20]

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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My role with regard to the protection and management of our architectural heritage is set out in the provisions of relevant legislation, as are the roles of local authorities and the responsibilities of owners.

As Minister, I can make recommendations to planning authorities for buildings and structures to be included on the Record of Protected Structures. These recommendations arise from the survey of the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage (NIAH), which is managed by my Department.

The NIAH records for Columb Barracks are available to view on the NIAH website www.buildingsofireland.ie. A total of 13 structures were recorded by the NIAH survey in July 2004 and the Ministerial Recommendations for County Westmeath were issued to the local authority in November 2011. All the structures listed below are included in the Record of Protected Structures (RPS) in the Westmeath County Development Plan 2014 – 2020.  While the final decision as to inclusion of a building or structure on the RPS is a reserved function of the relevant planning authority I am not aware of any plans to amend the records.

The structures that were recorded by the NIAH, listed by Registration Number are provided in the following table.

Part IV of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, gives primary responsibility to planning authorities to identify and protect the architectural heritage by including particular structures on the Record of Protected Structures (RPS).  Inclusion on the RPS places a duty of care on the owners and occupiers of protected structures and also gives planning authorities powers to deal with development proposals affecting them and to seek to safeguard their future.