Vol. 437 No. 3
21 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht if he intends to recover the wrecks of the Spanish Armada and put them on display in the proposed new maritime museum in Galway; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
A programme of co-operation for the coming three years, which was recently concluded with the Greek Government, provides inter alia for exchange of information and of experts in underwater archaeology. I hope to avail of this, and of contacts with the Spanish Government, to seek funding from the EU for training of divers and archaeologists in underwater archaeology. This is the first phase of a policy for underwater archaeology and we must wait until this phase is satisfactorily completed before considering such issues as the recovery of wrecks and their display in museums.
