The Register of Buildings at Risk is an initiative of the Heritage Council, which is an independent statutory body established under the Heritage Act, 1995. The register is compiled by the Heritage Council and I understand that only buildings which have been nominated by their owners may be included on it. I have no function in relation to the register, either in the context of deciding which buildings are included on it or which owners should receive grant assistance from the Heritage Council. However, I understand from the council that, to date, some 379 buildings have been listed on the register, including 13 buildings in the ownership of public authorities. These include nine buildings in the ownership of local authorities, three buildings in the ownership of health boards, and one building in the ownership of a Department.
In general, the Deputy will be aware that, under the terms of the Local Government (Planning and Development) Act, 1999, the primary responsibility for the protection of the architectural heritage rests with the planning authorities. Any owner or occupier of a building which has been included in the list of protected structures compiled by a planning authority will have a duty of care to ensure that the building is not in any way endangered. This applies equally to the public and private sectors. Furthermore, the Heritage Act, 1995, provides the Heritage Council with the authority to consult with public authorities regarding developments which may affect buildings in the ownership of those public authorities and which I have designated as heritage buildings on the advice of the council. This measure provides significant additional legislative protection to buildings of architectural heritage in public authority ownership.
The Deputy may also be interested to know that the question of the protection of historic buildings in public authority ownership is being considered by the interdepartmental working group on architectural policy.