You are most welcome, Taoiseach.
An Blascaod Mór National Historic Park Bill, 1989: Second Stage.
Question proposed: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time".
Thank you. May I first of all congratulate you and the Senators on returning to this splendidly-restored, beautiful Chamber?
Is scata oileáin iad na Blascaodaí amach ó leithinis an Daingin, Contae Chiarraí. Is iad an chuid is faide siar de Mhór-Roinn na hEorpa agus tugann siad le chéile, ar bhealach ar leith, áilleacht mhór nádúrtha agus spéis litríochta. Is í An Blascaod Mór, ar a nglaotar freisin an t-Oileán Thiar, an t-oileán is mó díobh. Tá sé breis is trí mhíle ar fhad agus tá mile agus céad acra nó mar sin ann. Is turas trí mhíle farraige é ón chuan ag Dún Caoin ar an mórthír go dtí caladh an oileáin.
Ní raibh riamh níos mó ná dhá chéad duine nó mar sin ina gcónaí ar an mBlascaod Mór agus mhair siad ar ghabháltais de trí nó ceithre acra ag cur lena slí beatha ón talamh le hiascaireacht, sealgaireacht éanlaithe fiána agus tarrthálas ó thráth go céile. Tá cur síos beacht ar shaol na n-oileánach déanta ag Tomás Ó Criomhthain:
Ba mhinic sinn ag dul chun farraige ar mhochóirí na maidine agus an lá oiriúnach a dhóthain agus faoi dheireadh lae bhíodh na daoine istigh ár gcaoineadh le droch-chló a thagadh ar an dtráthnóna. Bhíodh orainn a bheith amuigh ist oíche agus níl cur síos ar an anró a leanann an sórt sin seilge. Tugaim díogha ar na gnóthaí go léir di a raibh cos ná lámh liom ceangailte ann. Ba lánmhinic an fharraige ag gabháil lastuas dínn gan radharc againn ar thír ná ar thalamh — oíche mhór fhada fhuar mar seo ag comhrac na mara agus go lánmhinic ar bheagán fáltais ach ó uair go huair ag tnúth le cabhair Dé.
Chothaigh na coinníollacha garbha agus contúirteacha seo spiorad ar leith I measc lucht an oileáin. Ba fhíorphobal iad muintir na mBlascaodaí i gcónaí, d'ainneoin an bhochtanais a d'fhulaing siad le linn a saoil.
Bhain saibhreas traidisiún agus béalaoideas le pobal an oileáin seo. Bhí a saol agus a slite maireachtála, bunaithe ar an talamh agus ar an bhfarraige, mar cheangal leis an sean saol a bhfuil suim agus tábhacht thar na bearta ag gabháil leis. Ar ámharaí an tsaoil, tá eolas faoin slí maireachtála sin caomhnaithe dúinn ag mórchuid scoláirí agus lucht litríochta, fir cosúil le John Millington Synge, Karl Marstrander, scoláire ón Ioruaidh a bhaist muintir an oileáin "An Lochlannach" air, agus Robin Flower, a thug siad Bláithín air go ceanúil. Chuaigh siad go dtí na hoileáin nuair a bhí athbheochan mhór suime sa Ghaeilge agus i rudaí Gaelacha sa dara leath den naoú haois déag. An rud is tábhachtaí, áfach, go ndearnadh saol an oileáin a chaomhnú dúinn i scríbhinní sainiúla na n-oileánach féin. Is fear an-tábhachtach duine de na scoláirí a tháinig ar chuairt, Brian Ó Ceallaigh, mar is eisean a spreag an chéad scríbhneoir de chuid an Bhlascaoid, agus an duine is tábhachtaí díobh, Tomás Ó Criomhthain, chun a dhírbheathaisnéis, a scéalta agus a smaointí a chur ar pháipéar. Thug scoláire eile, George Thomson, treoir do Mhuiris Ó Súilleabháin i ndáil le "Fiche Bliain ag Fás" a scríobh. I bhfad níos déanaí scríobh Breandán Ó Beacháin dán álainn faoi na Blascaodaí tréigthe.
Níl aon áit chomparáideach ar éadan na cruinne, le líon chomh beag sin daoine ina gcónaí ann, ina raibh bláthú chomh hiontach sin ar fhéith na litríochta. Scríobh Tomás Ó Criomhthain, Peig Sayers agus Muiris Ó Súilleabháin leabhair atá tábhachtach ní amháin mar mhórshaothair litríochta ach freisin mar thuairiscí ar shaol speisialta an oileáin.
Do chabhraigh saothar na scríbhneoirí sin go mór chun ceangal a choimeád idir scríbhneoireacht an lae inniu i nGaeilge agus na modhanna cainte a bhí nádúrtha dár sinsir; agus is féidir a mhaíomh freisin gur choimeád an saothar sin ceangal idir scríbhneoireacht an lae inniu i mBéarla agus na modhanna sin. Bhí baint mhór, mar sin, ag a saothar le caomhnú na Gaeilge mar theanga bheo agus mar theanga traidisiúnta agus len í a choimeád i lár an tsrutha, fiú dár scríbhneoireacht i mBéarla.
Tugadh saothar Hóiméarach ar leabhar Uí Chriomhthain agus cinnte is saothar den chineál sin é mar, cosúil le Hóiméar, aimsíonn sé a chuid filíochta i ngnáth-imeachtaí an tsaoil — saol a maireadh leis an bhfarraige agus leis na dúile ach go minic i mbaol uathu; agus ní fhéadfadh éinne na leathanaigh dheiridh de leabhar Pheig Sayers a léamh gan éad a bheith air roimh an suaimhneas a bhronn a saol ar na hoileánaigh.
Is le déanaí a tháinig deireadh leis an modh maireachtála sin ach is maith an rud é nár milleadh fós an t-oileán álainn sin — a léiríonn a chórais pháirce agus na tithe atá fágtha ann an modh maireachtála sin go fóill. Ach leis an mborradh ar an turasóireacht atá tagtha chun cinn ar chósta an Iarthair agus in áiteanna eile — rud atá an-mhaith ann féin — tá an toileán i mbaol.
Cuireann na Blascaodaí duine faoi dhraíocht: baineann áilleacht uasal nádúrtha leo nach bhfuil a leithéid le fáil in áiteanna eile. Is cuimhneachán beo iad freisin ar an tslí mhaireachtála a bhíodh ag móran Éireannaigh thar glúnta gan chomhaireamh. Le blianta beaga anuas, tá An Blascaod Mór tagtha chun cinn mar áit oilithreachta dóibh siúd a bhfuil cion ar leith acu don Ghaeilge agus do bhéaloideas an Iarthair. Is é an cuspóir atá leis an mBille seo ná chun an t-oileán a chaomhnú don am atá le teacht agus cosc a chur le haon fhorbairt nach mbeidh fáilte roimpi; chun cur lena luach agus lena spéis don chuairteoir; agus chun áit a bhfuil luach mór cultúrtha ag baint léi a chaomhnú do na glúnta atá le teacht.
Bunaíodh Fondúireacht an Bhlascaoid ag muintir an cheantair sa bhliain 1986 chun an t-oileán a chaomhnú agus a chosaint mar chuid luachmhar dár n-oidhreacht. Ba é bunú na fondúireachta an chéim is fearr a tógadh, i mo thuairim, ó tréigeadh an t-oileán sa bhliain míle naoi gcéad agus caoga trí. Léirigh sé go soiléir go bhfuil fonn ar mhuintir an cheantair sin go ndéanfaí an áit shainiúil seo a chosaint agus a choimeád mar ba chóir. Gan í ní bheadh an reachtaíocht seo ann. Tá sé soiléir, ar ndóigh, go mbeadh sé thar acmhainn ag aon eagraíocht phríobháideach tabhairt faoi na deacrachtaí atá le sárú agus ba léir gurb é réiteach na faidhbe ná go nglacfadh an Stát seilbh ar an oileán lena úsáid mar Pháirc Náisiúnta Stairiúil agus chun a chinntiú, i dteannta leis an bhfondúireacht, go ndéanfaí é a fhorbairt ar bhonn eagraithe.
Ba mhaith liom go dtuigfí go soiléir nach í an t-aon chúis leis an reachtaíocht seo An Blascaod Mór a chosaint ó thuilleadh meatha. An phríomhchúis leis an reachtaíocht ná chun eolas ar an saol a bhí ar an oileán a athchur ann agus chun saoráidí nua a chur ar fáil, le cúram agus le cruinneas, a chuirfidh beocht úr san áit a bheidh mar ábhar spéise agus taitnimh do phobal na hÉireann agus do chuairteoirí ón iasacht.
Is iad seo a leanas príomhfhorálacha an Bhille: Tabharfar údarás do Choimisinéirí na nOibreacha Poiblí seilbh a ghlacadh, le haontú nó go héigeantach, ar aon talamh ar an oileán ach ní bhainfidh na cumhachtaí éigeantacha, áfach, le tailte áirithe fós i seilbh daoine a bhí ina gcónaí ann ar an seachtú lá déag de mhí na Samhna, míle naoi gcéad agus caoga trí, an dáta a tréigeadh an t-oileán, nó má tá na daoine sin ar shlí na fírinne anois, lena ngar-ghaolta. Áireofar talamh na gCoiminsinéirí, agus talamh eile lena nglacfaidh siad seilbh faoin reachtaíocht seo, mar Pháirc Náisiúnta Stairiúil.
Tá sé leagtha amach sa Bhille go mbeidh na coimisinéirí freagrach as an bPáirc Náisiúnta Stairiúil seo a chothabháil, a bhainistiú, a riaradh, a chaomhnú, a chosaint agus a fhorbairt ar mhaithe leis an bpobal mar pháirc ina mbeidh oidhreacht náisiúnta, cultúr, nósanna an oileáin agus a mhuintire caomhnaithe agus léirithe agus ina gcumhdófar a fhásra, a ainmhithe agus a radharcanna tíre. Leagtar amach ann freisin dualgais na gCoimisinéirí i leith na páirce, ar a n-áirítear an pháirc a fhorbairt mar ionad cultúrtha, oideachais, scíthe agus caithimh aimsire; usáid na Gaeilge a fhorbairt agus a chaomhnú; fásra agus ainmhithe na páirce agus na bhfarraigí mór thimpeall air a chumhdú; na tithe traidisiúnta agus foirgnimh eile ar an oileán a chumhdú, nó a athchur agus a chaomhnú; agus roinnt dualgais chuí eile. Beidh sé de chumacht ag na Coimisinéirí fodhlíthe a dhéanamh i ndáil le haire, bainistíocht, caomhnú, cosaint agus forbairt na páirce.
Tá forálacha ann faoina bhféadfar cumhachtaí áirithe de chuid na gCoimisinéirí a thabhairt d'Fhondúireacht an Bhlascaoid Teoranta. Tá sé beartaithe go ndáilfear ar an bhfondúireacht na cúraimí maidir le bainistíocht ghinearálta na páirce. Sa tslí sin, beidh lámh iomlán ag an bpobal áitiúil maidir le caomhnú agus cosaint a dhéanamh ar an mhaoin luachmhar tábhachtach seo, gur leis an náisiún i gcoitinne í ar bhealach amháin, ach atá freisin mar chúram speisialta ar mhuintir Chorca Dhuibhne.
Faoi na forálacha seo, déanfar den Bhlascaod Mór áit ina gcuirfear an cuairteoir i dteagmháil láithreach leis an oiread sin atá leath-dearmadtha anois ag ár saíocht Eorpach; beidh sé mar thimpeallacht ina leanfaidh borradh agus fás ar dhúlra chósta an Iarthair; agus mar leacht stairiúil d'éirim scríbhneoirí na mBlascaodaí agus do chrógacht agus do bhuanseasmhacht mhuintir an oileáin.
Tá an Bille seo á chur os comhair an tSeanad agam ar an mbonn go bhfuil tacaíocht ar fáil dó ó na páirtithe uile. Tá tacaíocht ann don Bhille faoi mar a thagann sé os bhur gcomhair ó na Teachtaí agus Seanadóirí uile ó Ríocht Chiarraí a raibh lámh acu san ullmhúchán dó agus ó bhaill Fhondúireacht an Bhlascaoid. Ba mhaith liom tréaslú le gach duine as an mbealach inar chomhoibrigh siad go fial san obair chun An Blascaod Mór a chaomhnú do no glúnta atá le teacht. Tá mé cinnte go n-éireoidh leis an reachtaíocht seo na cuspóirí atá roimpi a bhaint amach agus ba mhaith liom cuireadh a thabhairt do phobail áitiúla i gceantair eile den tír ina bhféadfadh cás den chineál céanna bheith sa treis treacht ar aghaidh le moltái oiriúnacha a d'fhéadfaí a scrúdú.
The Blaskets are a group of islands lying off the Dingle peninsula, County Kerry. They are the most westerly part of Europe and combine great natural beauty and literary interest in an unique way. The largest of the group is An Blascaod Mór, the Great Blasket, also called An t-Oilean Thiar, the Western Island. It is over three miles long and comprises 1,132 acres. It is three miles by sea from the mainland harbour at Dunquin to An Caladh, the landing place on the island.
At its most numerous, the population of the Great Blasket was never more than about 200 people who lived on holdings of three or four acres, supplementing the livelihood to be obtained from the land by fishing, hunting for wild birds and occasional salvage. The life of the islanders is vividly described by Tomás Ó Criomhthain in words quarried out of the depth of his own experience.
Often we put out to sea in fair weather at dawn, and when we returned the people were keening for us, the day had turned out so foul. Often we had to be out at night, and the misery of that kind of fishing cannot be described. I count it the worst of all trades that ever I set hand or foot to: the rollers towering overhead and shutting out the sight of land; a long, cold night battling against heavy seas, and often with little profit, just praying from one moment to the next for the help of God.
These harsh and often perilous conditions fostered in lucht an Oileáin, the island people, a deep sense of mutual interdependence and trust. It also gave them a strong sense of communal identity. The people of the Blasket Islands were a true community and in spite of the poverty in their lives, in many ways a model one. This island community was rich in tradition and folk custom. Their way of life and means of earning a living from the soil and from the sea, provided a link with the immemorial past which is of incalculable interest and importance.
The details of that way of life have fortunately been preserved for us by the many scholars, antiquarians, linguists and literary men such a John Millington Synge, Karl Marstrander, a Norwegian scholar whom the island people called "an Lochlannach", the Viking, and Robin Flower whom they affectionately called Blátheen. They went to the islands after the great revival of interest in the Irish language and all things Irish which took place in the latter half of the 19th century. Most important of all, however, is the fact that island life has also been preserved for us in the unique writings of the islanders themselves. One of the visiting scholars, Briain Ó Ceallaigh, is a figure of great importance, for it was he who encouraged the first and greatest of the Blasket writers Tomás Ó Criomhthain to commit his autobiography, his stories and his reflections to paper. Another, George Thomson guided Muiris Ó Suilleabháin to write Twenty Years Agrowing. Much later, Brendan Behan wrote a very beautiful poem about the deserted Blaskets.
No comparable area of the world's surface, inhabited by such a small number of people, has been responsible for such an extraordinary flowering of literary genius. Tomás Ó Criomhthain, Peig Sayers and Muiris Ó Suilleabháin all wrote works, the importance of which, as literary masterpieces, outweighs even their value as records of a life whose dignity and nobility transcended the harsh conditions in which it had to be lived.
The work of these writers has done a great deal to keep modern writing in Irish in touch with the syntax and the modes of speech which it was natural for our ancestors to use; and also, it might be said to keep modern writing in English in touch with such modes. Their work has, therefore, played a large part in the preservation of Irish as a living but traditional language and in keeping it in the mainstream even of our writing in English.
Tomás Ó Criomhthain's book has been described as Homeric and so indeed it is, for, like Homer, he finds his poetry in the basic facts of an existence lived in harmony with the sea and the elements but often in peril from them; while no-one could read the closing pages from Peig Sayers book without being envious of the philosophical calm which the life they led gave the islanders.
That way of life has but recently vanished and fortunately this beautiful island, whose field systems and surviving houses still reflect it, has not yet been despoiled. But with the very welcome increase in tourism on the east coast and elsewhere, which is now at hand, its preservation has been imperilled.
The Blaskets fascinate and enthral; they are a place of great and majestic natural beauty in an incomparable situation. They are also a vivid reminder of the life that many Irish people lived for countless generations. An Blascaod Mór has become in recent years a place of pilgrimage for those who love the Irish language and the folklore of the west. The present Bill is designed to safeguard it for the future and to prevent any unwelcome development, to enchance its value and its interest for the visitor; and to preserve for future generations a place of great cultural value.
Fondúireacht an Blascaoid was set up by the people of the area in 1986 to conserve and protect the island as a valuable part of our heritage. Its establishment was, in my view, the most beneficial development since the island was evacuated in 1953. It represented a clear indication by the local community of their wish to see this unique place properly protected and cared for. It made this legislation possible. Clearly, however, the resources needed and the difficulties to be overcome would be beyond the capacity of any private organisation to cope with and it seemed to those concerned that the only thing to do was for the State to acquire the island for the purposes of a National Historic Park and, in co-operation with the Fondúireacht, to ensure its orderly development.
I would like to make it clear that the purpose of this legislation is not simply to prevent further deterioration of An Blascaod Mór. Its overriding purpose is to restore the past and to provide, with great care and sensitivity, new facilities and amenities which will bring to it a new life to be enjoyed and savoured by the Irish public and visitors from abroad.
The main provisions of the Bill are as follows: The Commissioners of Public Works will be authorised to acquire, by agreement or compulsorily, any land on the island except that in the case of certain lands still in the ownership of persons who lived on it on 17 November 1953, which is the date the island was evacuated, or where such persons are deceased, their close relatives, the Commissioners may acquire them by agreement only. The Commissioner's land and other land acquired under this legislation will be designated a National Historic Park.
The Bill provides that this National Historic Park shall be maintained, managed, controlled, preserved, protected and developed by the Commissioners for the use and benefit of the public as a park in which the historic heritage, culture, traditions and values of the island and its inhabitants will be preserved and demonstrated and its flora, fauna and landscape will be protected. It goes on to set out the duties of the Commissioners in tespect of the Park including fostering and promoting the use of the park as a place of culture, education, leisure and recreation; fostering and promoting the use of Irish; conserving the flora and fauna of the island and the surrounding seas; conserving or restoring and preserving the traditional dwellings and other buildings on the island and a number of other appropriate functions. The Commissioners will be empowered to make by-laws for the care, detailed management, preservation, protection and development of the park.
There are provisions whereby certain powers of the Commissioners may be delegated to Fondúireacht an Bhlascaoid Teoranta. The intention is that an Fondúireacht will be entrusted with the general management of the park. In this way, the local community will be fully involved in the protection and preservation of a valuable and important asset which in one sense belongs to the nation but is very much the special responsibility of the people of Corca Duibhne.
An Blascaod Mór will, under these provisions, become a place where the visitor will be brought into immediate contact with much that our European civilisation has half forgotten, a habitat in which the wild life of the western seaboard can continue to flourish and a historic monument to the genius of the Blasket writers and to the courage and tenacity of the people of the island.
I am putting this Bill before the Seanad on the basis of all-party support. The Bill, as it comes before the House has the support of all the Deputies and Senators from the Kingdom of Kerry who have been involved in its preparation and the members of Fondúireacht an Blascaod. I would like to pay a tribute to all concerned for the generous and co-operative spirit in which they have approached the task of preserving An Blascaod Mór for future generations. I am confident the legislation will succeed in achieving its objectives and I would like to issue an invitation to local communities in other areas of the country where a similar sort of situation may exist to come forward with suitable proposals which can be considered.
I commend the Bill to Seanad Éireann.
It is appropriate that the first Bill to be introduced into this restored Chamber should be introduced by the Taoiseach. May I say how welcome, Taoiseach, you are here today? I hope we will see you here many times during the course of this Parliament. It is appropriate also that the Taoiseach should introduce the Bill because he as Taoiseach, has continued the practice of his immediate predecessor, Deputy Garret FitzGerald, in having significant numbers of important Bills brought first to this House. This is a practice which all sides of this House welcome and one which I hope will develop even further. It is also appropriate that the Bill here today is a Gaeltacht Bill. When the first Senators met in this Chamber 67 years ago one of their first proposals to the Government of the time was a scheme for the indexing, the citing and the publication of Irish manuscripts; also a scheme for the scientific investigation of living dialects and for the compiling and publication of an adequate dictionary in the Irish language. This report in 1923 was to be the basis for the later establishment of the Irish Manuscripts Commission and the Irish Folklore Commission. In these respects, the Bill before the House continues that work and I hope it will be as successful as the earlier proposals proved to be.
We welcome with enthusiasm the main purpose behind this Bill. The establishment and maintenance of a national historic park and An Blascaod Mór is an exciting idea, especially if it succeeds in its stated purpose of fostering and promoting the use of the park as a place of culture, education, leisure and recreation, if it creates an awareness of our heritage as typified by An Blascaod, if it helps to conserve and restore the traditonal buildings on the island, and if it helps to conserve the flora and fauna on the island and, of course, if it makes the island accessible and real to visiting students and tourists.
As the Taoiseach so eloquently pointed out, the Blaskets have a very particular place in our history. Because of the constraints of time I cannot, but I am sure some of my colleagues will, elaborate on the basis laid down by the Taoiseach in his exposition of the unique place of An Blascaod Mór in our history. One person who in recent times has brought that tradition home to most of us was Muiris Mac Conghail whose film work on the Blaskets — a marvellous, wonderful film — has helped to put the Blaskets into the context of our history for many of the younger generation. I hope his work will have an even wider audience after this Bill has been passed.
What has been proposed in this Bill is good in itself and it could also be a very useful model, as the Taoiseach pointed out, for other such developments where they are appropriate, not least at a time when we are seeking to build up areas of specialisation which would attract further visitors to this country.
While welcoming the general principle of this Bill, I have to air a number of concerns I have about the Bill. First of all, while the Bill and the move behind it is a good one, it will, I am afraid, remain merely notional unless there is a clear and urgent commitment of resources to achieve its purposes. Unless certain necessary ground work is tackled, then the Bill may become just another piece of well-intentioned Irish legislation which fails to achieve its purpose because it lacks the necessary back-up and follow-through support. In this context I am worried by note 12 in the explanatory memorandum and financial statement which comes with this Bill. Perhaps the Taoiseach, when concluding could clarify this point for me. Note 12 says that it is not possible to quantify the Exchequer costs which the Bill will give rise to. That strikes me as an unusual approach and I would like to know why it has been adopted. I would have thought that by this stage those who prepared the legislation would have had some reasonable idea as to the amount of money which will be spent over whatever number of years to achieve the purpose of the Bill. The island, the area in question, is small. The amount of work to be done is not difficult to quantify so I find it strange that there is not attempt made to estimate the amount of public money which will be involved. Is this because the Government are not sure what exactly needs to be done and the Bill at this stage is largely aspirational, or is it because there are some unresolved difficulties about the question of title or ownership of the land in question, or is it because there may be some costly legal battles ahead? It is vital at this stage that this aspect of the Bill be spelled out in detail, that any doubts be dispelled straightaway and that we be brought into the picture if there are any possible upcoming legal difficulties.
I said a few moments ago that there was a certain urgency about the work to be done. The fact is that the old village is now in a bad state of disrepair and while An Fondúireacht will undoubtedly help its long term conservation, the problems at present are urgent especially as far as drainage and dry coursing are concerned. If action is not taken soon it may be too late for An Fondúireacht to do much of what this Bill intends it to do. I am told that if we have a good summer, and let us all hope we have, much of the urgent work on the old village which needs to be done could be tackled straightaway by the Office of Public Works or by some contractors agreed by them. This is something which needs to be looked at straightaway.
There is a need for a preliminary archaeological survey of the village. A plan needs to be produced of who lived where and when. There is need for documentation of the inhabitants of the island. This is urgent because of memory slippage, because people are getting older and much valuable information may die with these people. Again this is something which might well be tackled even before this Bill is passed.
When the legislation is enacted there will be a need for proper hostel accommodation on the island. There are times when the island is inaccessible. There will also be students who will need long term accommodation on the island to carry out their work, so I would see this as a priority. One other important need will be for a proper interpretative centre on the island and also on the mainland, because undoubtedly the richness of the Blasket tradition will be lost for many visitors unless there is a proper interpretative centre there to explain, to educate, to point out to people just what are the components of the culture of the island and what it stands for in the broad, historical context. Such interpretative centres have been very successful in other areas. I need only point to the excellent interpretative centre on Bull Island which has been such a success in explaining the nature of Bull Island and its attractions to countless thousands, especially young people, each year.
To come back to the question of finances, I would recommend, and I am sure it would have our full support in this House, that the work intended in this Bill be made a priority for funding from the national lottery. I think it goes without saying that the purposes of this Bill are those which certainly were intended in the National Lottery Act and I can see few more useful purposes under this heading to which the finances could be devoted.
However, there is one cloud hanging over this legislation. I would like to refer to an article in today's Irish Independent which brings into public focus a matter which I believe should have been resolved before this Bill was published. As I understand it and as published in the Irish Independent today, there is an allegation, a very serious allegation, that Mr. Taylor Collings, who is belived to be the owner of 17 of the 25 holdings on the island, and who has said that he would sell his stake to the Irish people for a nominal sum may not, in fact, be the owner of the 17 holdings and that the real owners are a Mr. Peter Callery, a Mr. Jim Callery and a Mrs Brooks who lives in the USA. If this is the case, and from the inquiries I have made Mr. Callery is an eminently reputable and respected figure who would not make allegations lightly, then some serious questions emerge which I believe should be resolved as far as possible today or certainly before we reach Committee Stage.
I must first ask why these questions have arisen now, why they were not resolved before the Bill was finally drafted? Kerry is a reasonably small place and surely these problems could have been spotted and brought to some sort of resolution before we reached this stage. Why is it that these questions are only now surfacing publicly? I have to ask if proper home work was done. I have to ask if the section in the Bill which refers to acquisition by agreement was properly worked through, if every attempt was made to see that the proper legal homework was done to see if the land could be acquired by agreement rather than, as may now happen, by compulsion and again by possibly contentious compulsion?
An Leas-Chathaoirleach
The Senator has a minute remaining.
If Mr. Callery owns the land and if he does not wish to dispose of it after the passing of this Bill, on what basis would it be fair compulsorily to purchase 17 holdings while ignoring the remaining eight? What is the difference between these 17 and the other eight which would change their status in law? In fact, on the basis of equity alone, it might be more appropriate to include the entire island as being open for compulsory purchase rather than to include just one part of it. Every effort should be made between now and the Committee Stage to establish the full facts, to see that there is fair play all round and, most of all, that we do not end up with unconstitutional legislation on our hands, or that we do not end up with long delays while the courts process the various claims. I am appalled that these problems are arising now after the Bill has been drafted, but it is not too late to resolve them. I would hope that the time between now and Committee Stage can be used to have these matters discussed in a full, frank and open way to ensure that we do not have the sort of problems I have mentioned and to ensure that there is fair play all round.
I can assure the Taoiseach that we will co-operate fully in seeking to resolve these problems if problems there are because we, as he said, support the principle of this Bill enthusiastically and we look forward with enthusiasm to the realisation of the aspirations contained in this Bill.
Debate adjourned.