Vol. 513 No. 3
103 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands the number of archaeological excavations which have been visited by archaeological staff from her Depart ment as a result of 800 licence applications and 5000 planning applications referred to her Department in 1999; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2351/00]
The majority of archaeological licences are issued on foot of conditions attached to planning permissions for development which prescribe an archaeological input so that the licensing and planning functions of the archaeological service of my Department are complementary.
In 1999 a total of 72 site inspections were carried out by my archaeological service to ensure that proper archaeological standards were being applied by the profession and that planning permission conditions relating to archaeology as well as licensing conditions were adhered to.
This number may seem somewhat on the low side but given the demands generally on my archaeological service resulting from the increase in construction activity impacting on sites of archaeological interest, I am satisfied that the attention given to site inspections represents the most efficient use of the resources available to me. Nevertheless, the inspections that are being carried out act as a good barometer for assessing the standards employed across the profession but I regret that the resultant evidence indicates that the archaeological work being carried out remains somewhat sub-standard.
I am anxious to ensure standards among the profession are raised so that the integrity of the archaeological heritage is preserved wherever possible. My Department is constantly looking at ways to raise these standards. Among the initiatives to date have been the publication by me of two policy documents last year, Framework and Principles for the Protection of the Archaeological Heritage and Policy and Guidelines on Archaeological Excavations. These not only target the archaeological profession but also the developers who sponsor excavations and whom, in many cases can compromise the value of archaeological excavation work in an effort to press ahead with their developments.
My Department also has established and maintains a register of professional archaeologists who are eligible to hold licences. In the past, licences have been withheld from archaeologists where they have failed to satisfy my Department in relation to fulfilling the terms and conditions of licences previously issued to them. Finally, my Department also carefully vets all applications to become a licence holder and it has established an advisory panel to interview independently all such applicants. In this way, the competence of newly-qualified archaeologists can be assessed before allowing them on site.
I am hopeful that these measures will help in raising the standard of excavations generally and I can assure the Deputy that I will continue to strive to improve those standards.
