asked the Minister for Finance if he will indicate the progress being made and the time-scale for completion of work on the Oireachtas Library; the expenditure to date; and if he considers the completion of works to be inordinately long.
Written Answers. - Oireachtas Library.
61.
The works being undertaken in the Oireachtas Library form part of the major scheme of structural repairs to the north wing of Leinster House.
The need for these works arises from the structural failure of the north-east gable wall. This caused cracking in the masonry and plasterwork in the Seanad Chamber and the Oireachtas Library. It also caused sagging of the floor in the Seanad Chamber which in turn gave rise to deflection in the Oireachtas Library ceiling with resultant damage to the plasterwork in the ceiling.
The structural problems in the gable wall have been corrected as has the sagging in the Seanad floor over the Library. The damage to the Library ceiling will be corrected using conventional plaster ceiling restoration techniques. The walls will be replastered as necessary and the Library will be redecorated.
The work in the Library is an integral part of the overall project for the structural repair of the north wing of Leinster House and unfortunately it cannot be attended to out of sequence with the overall programme of work. The present indications are that the Library will not be available for normal use for some time.
Any inconvenience caused to Members of the Oireachtas and to the staff of the Houses due to the structural repair works is very much regretted. The Commissioners of Public Works and their contractors are making every effort to minimise the inconvenience and will continue to do so. I am advised however that a short-term closure of library facilities may be necessary while the ceiling is being repaired. Any such closure would of course be discussed with the appropriate Committees of the Houses of the Oireachtas if it should prove to be necessary.
It is not possible without considerable research which could not be justified to isolate the expenditure to date on the Library from the overall expenditure on the project. Since the work in the Library is an integral part of the overall scheme, I do not consider its completion to be inordinately long.