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Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 10 Jun 2015

Vol. 881 No. 2

Curragh of Kildare Bill 2015: First Stage

I move:

That leave be granted to introduce a Bill entitled an Act to make provision for the Minister for Defence to establish an Advisory Committee, to be known as the Curragh of Kildare Advisory Committee, the membership of which shall include a representative of each of the users of the Curragh of Kildare, a member of Kildare County Council, a representative employee of Kildare County Council and a representative employee of each Government Department that has a responsibility for any part of the Curragh of Kildare and such committee shall make recommendations to the Minister on the management, protection and preservation of the integrity of the Curragh; to also provide for the establishment of a management team that will manage the resource that is the Curragh of Kildare and to provide for related matters.

I am very pleased to have the opportunity to present this Bill to the House, all the more so because as a Kildare man I have grown up and lived most of my life within a stone's throw of the Curragh. In common with everybody from County Kildare and many people throughout the country, I am conscious of the enormous significance of the 5,000 acres of open plain that is shrouded in history and mythology.

The plains have given the county its other title, the short grass county. It is also connected to Kildare's recognition as a centre of excellence for the bloodstock business, thereby giving Kildare the other title, the thoroughbred County.

Over the years, the plains have been used by the bloodstock industry, an activity which needs to be guaranteed, monitored, controlled and supported into the future. The farming sector, not least the sheep breeding sector, makes extensive and vital use of the plains too. Both the bloodstock and sheep breeding sectors have always demonstrated a level of responsibility in their use of this significant resource. Additionally, the Curragh plains have been an important recreational resource for many activities ranging from golf to football, from walking to running. Other less desirable forms of social and leisure activities have been happening there in recent times too.

As far back as 1999, an interdepartmental group was established to examine the management of the Curragh plains. It was recognised then that an effective and efficient management system was required to be put in place. The late Michael Osborne, a colossus in the bloodstock industry and a great ambassador for County Kildare, was the first to suggest the Curragh might be developed as a national park. Notwithstanding the work done in 1999, nothing of any major significance has happened, however. Accordingly, we find ourselves in a situation in which the Curragh Plains need to be protected and managed. This legislation envisages two particular initiatives, namely, the establishment of an advisory committee made up of State agencies with an interest in and representative of the users of the Curragh Plains and the establishment of a management team to be drawn from the Department of Defence, the lead agency, the National Parks and Wildlife Service, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, which has responsibility for the bloodstock industry, and Kildare County Council, which has a particular interest in this important public property.

The principal objectives of this initiative are to ensure and facilitate the continued responsible use of the plains in a manner that respects its integrity and unique nature. It will also prevent the degradation of the resource and ensure its protection against encroachment in a reasonable and practical manner. This is the first legislation seen in this regard in some time. I appreciate the opportunity to present it to the House. I hope in the near future the Government will take this Bill on board and enact it. I am not suggesting the set of proposals are perfect but they do form the basis for further detailed discussion.

Is the Bill opposed?

Question put and agreed to.

Since this is a Private Members' Bill, Second Stage must, under Standing Orders, be taken in Private Members' time.

I move: "That the Bill be taken in Private Members' time."

Question put and agreed to.
Sitting suspended at 12.55 p.m. and resumed at 1.55 p.m.
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