I am delighted to commence the debate on the Heritage Fund Bill, 2001 which represents a significant development in the expansion of the collections of the principal collecting institutions with outstanding and important artefacts.
Senators will recall that a specific commitment was given in the Government's Action Programme for the Millennium to the establishment of a heritage fund. This Bill fully meets that commitment and provides for the establishment of such a fund with an overall limit of £10 million over a five year period commencing this year.
The principal aim of the heritage fund is to build up financial resources which will be used by the principal State collecting cultural institutions to acquire significant items that are outstanding examples of their type and pre-eminent in their class for the national collections. These items of moveable heritage must be such that failure to acquire one or more would result in a major loss to Ireland's heritage and cultural collection. The principal collecting institutions are charged with expanding their collections so that current and future generations may enjoy, appreciate and value such magnificent artefacts. These artefacts include such items that may not otherwise have been purchased and include archaeological objects, manuscripts, books and works of art that are rare, expensive and of national importance. In view of this, the Bill will only allow for the acquisition of such significant artefacts after a valuation of £250,000 or €317,435. The Bill also allows for the Council of National Cultural Institutions, or as it will be known, An Chomhairle um Fhorais Chultúir Náisiúnta, to make recommendations to me on proposed acquisitions using the heritage fund in respect of five eligible institutions.
Section 2 lists the five eligible institutions that will benefit from the heritage fund. These are Ireland's principal collecting national institutions: the National Archives; the National Gallery of Ireland; the National Library of Ireland; the National Museum of Ireland; and the Irish Museum of Modern Art. While I am aware that these institutions are primarily based in Dublin, save the National Museum's Museum of Country Life in County Mayo, Senators should note that all bodies have in place a loans policy. The loans policy also allows selected artefacts or collections of artefacts to be exhibited throughout the country and overseas. For example, I am pleased to say that the National Museum has recently arranged to lend the Derrynaflan hoard to Tipperary South Riding County Museum for autumn 2002.
The Irish Museum of Modern Art has created an outstanding national programme whereby works from the collection travel extensively throughout Ireland to schools, libraries and art centres. The National Gallery of Ireland has implemented a successful loans programme and in the last 12 months the Art to Art exhibition has toured six venues in Ireland. The National Archives and the National Library also operate a loans policy and have lent archival material, manuscripts, graphic and photographic material to other institutions and bodies within the country.
Senators will also be aware that I recently opened a new Museum of Country Life for the National Museum of Ireland at Turlough Park House, Castlebar, County Mayo. I am convinced that this new branch of the national institution will be very successful. The investment at Turlough Park House was almost £15 million and demonstrates very well this Government's genuine commitment to the regions. The new Museum of Country Life has attracted over 40,000 visitors since opening.
Also under section 2 of the Bill, Senators will note that a heritage object is defined as any object or collection of objects including archaeological objects, and objects relating to the decorative arts, natural sciences, history, industry or folk-ways; any book or any manuscript, other material or part thereof; copyright in any work, or any similar object or material. The Bill states that when a heritage object is being acquired it must be considered appropriate for inclusion in the collection of the relevant eligible institution by the director or chief executive officer of that institution. In the absence of a director or chief executive officer, the Bill allows for a proposed acquisition by any other person who is, at that time, performing the functions of director or chief executive officer. The members of the Council of National Cultural Institutions will decide, before they make a recommendation to me, if the proposed acquisition is an outstanding example of its type and if it is pre-eminent in its class.
I emphasise that each eligible institution has its own individual acquisition budget and this will continue. However, Senators will be aware that many significant items which should be acquired for the national collections are being sold on the market for prices far in excess of the financial resources available in normal circumstances to the institutions. It is, therefore, appropriate that this fund is established to make further financial resources available for the acquisition of heritage objects. It will allow for the purchase of important and key artefacts that these institutions may not have been in a position to acquire up until now.
I must emphasise that these institutions are national institutions. It is vital therefore that, if we are to safeguard the nation's heritage and culture, major acquisitions should be made which will ultimately enlarge their principal collections. Such acquisitions may then be displayed and interpreted for the people of Ireland to value and enjoy. These acquisitions will also have a key role to play within the education and academic research arenas as well as providing an added incentive for overseas visitors to come to Ireland. Senators will appreciate that the heritage fund is essentially a fund for the acquisition of outstanding artefacts and should not be regarded as a grant scheme for obtaining artefacts generally.
Part 2 of the Bill deals with the specific operation of the heritage fund. Following consultation with me, it allows for the fund to consist of such accounts as the Minister for Finance may determine. It also contains provisions in section 3(3) with regard to accounting procedures so that the operation of the fund will be clear and transparent. It stipulates that, not later than three months after the end of each financial year, I, as Minister, shall submit the accounts of the fund, in both the Irish and English languages, to the Comptroller and Auditor General for audit. I shall also cause a copy of an abstract of the audited accounts together with a copy of the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General thereon to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas. This will be conducted no later than three months following my receipt of the relevant report.
Under section 3(4), there is a provision which permits the Minister for Finance to manage the fund. The Bill allows for any moneys standing to the credit of the fund that are not, for the time being, required for the purpose of making payments, to be invested by the Minister for Finance. This includes such securities, other than shares in a company, as the Minister for Finance considers appropriate. It also allows for the deposit of moneys in a credit institution in the currency of the State, whether within the State or not. The Minister for Finance may also from time to time at his or her discretion vary or sell any investments made by him or her. Naturally, all income received from investments, along with the proceeds of the sale of any such investments, will be paid into the fund.
So that the financial resources will be built up to the limit of £10 million, the Bill allows for Exchequer funds to be paid into the fund from the Vote of the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands. It will permit funds to be accumulated, subject to an overall limit of £10 million, as follows: the sum of £3 million in the financial year of 2001, which is provided for in this year's Estimate; the sum of £2 million in each of the financial years 2002, 2003 and 2004 and, finally, the sum of £1 million in the financial year 2005. Of course, moneys standing to the credit of the fund shall not be used for any purposes other than those specified in this Bill.
In addition to the aforementioned Exchequer funding, other methods of increasing the amount in the heritage fund are proposed under section 6 of this Bill. Following a recommendation from the Council of National Cultural Institutions I, as Minister, may accept a gift of moneys or land for the purpose of benefiting the fund. The Bill also stipulates in section 6(3) that I cannot accept a gift of moneys, land or other property if the trusts or conditions attached to it would be inconsistent with my functions or the functions of the Minister for Finance under this Bill.
Section 7 provides that following a recommendation from the Council of National Cultural Institutions, I, as Minister, may pay out of the fund an amount of money. This payment will be for the purpose of defraying, in whole or in part, any expenditure incurred in purchasing a heritage object, where I consider it appropriate to do so. The Bill stipulates, however, that a payment will not be made out of the fund for a purpose specified if the fair market value of the heritage object concerned is, in my opinion, less than £250,000 or such greater amount as may be specified by an order made with the consent of the Minister for Finance. As stated earlier, the aim of the fund is to acquire unique and significant heritage items and it is not a general top-up for annual acquisition budgets.
Any payment of moneys out of the fund shall be made to the person who has incurred or will incur the expenditure concerned or has incurred or will incur the liability to defray such expenditure. This will, in most cases, be the appropriate eligible institution or its appointed agents. As the Minister for Finance manages the fund, payments shall only be made out of the fund with the consent of the Minister for Finance.
With reference to accountability, the Bill at section 8 provides for the preparation and publishing of an annual report in both Irish and English. In accordance with this provision, I will arrange to prepare the annual report during the relevant financial year and arrange for copies of the report to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas and published. This will be carried out every year, within a timeframe of not later than three months after the end of the appropriate financial year.
With regard to part 3 of the Bill, it is vital that mechanisms are in place to ensure that the heritage fund is used effectively and productively. Just over three years ago, on 21 October 1998, I officiated at the inaugural meeting of the Council of National Cultural Institutions, which was established by me in line with the commitment in the Government's Action Programme for the Millennium. The aim of the council is to pool together the collective resources of talent, experience and vision of the member institutions in furtherance of the national cultural interest. It is proposed under this Bill that the Council of National Cultural Institutions will have a statutory power and responsibility to make recommendations to me in relation to acquisitions using this fund.
The Council of National Cultural Institutions comprises the directors or chief executives of the following cultural institutions: the National Museum of Ireland, the National Library of Ireland, the National Gallery of Ireland, the Arts Council, the Heritage Council, the Irish Museum of Modern Art, the National Concert Hall, the Chester Beatty Library, the National Theatre Society Limited, and the National Archive.
During the past three years, the council members have worked and performed well together. The members have undertaken research and development programmes. Several working groups have been established and areas of common concern such as information technology, marketing, education and training have been examined. Under the council, the information exchange emanating from the contacts between staff from the various institutions has proved extremely valuable. This Bill will allow the council to proceed with its present work programme and meet in a non-statutory setting whereby the members will continue to co-operate on matters of mutual interest and concern. The council's work programme will continue as before. This Bill only contains statutory provisions relating to the powers being given under it to the Council of National Cultural Institutions relating to the heritage fund.
The Bill at section 10 confers powers to allow the council to hold meetings to discuss the proposals for expenditure from the heritage fund as the members deem necessary and accordingly to make recommendations to me relating to acquisitions using the fund. The council may under this provision conduct their meetings as they so wish. At a meeting of the council, members present will select a chairperson of the meeting. Every question that falls to be decided at a meeting of the council shall be determined by a majority of the votes of the members present. In the case of an equal division of votes, the chairperson of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote. The council may act notwithstanding one or more vacancies among its members and the members will regulate their procedures by rules or otherwise. The Bill allows for ten members of the council and provides that, the quorum for a meeting is given as six.
Sections 11 and 12 of the Bill provide for the disclosure of certain interests by members of council and the prohibition of unauthorised dis closure of information. Section 11 covers the disclosure of interests by council members. A member will inform the meeting if he or she has an interest in the matter being discussed and will disclose any details of such interest and the nature thereof. The disclosure will then be recorded in the minutes of the meeting concerned and, for so long as the matter to which the disclosure relates is being dealt with by the meeting, the member by whom the disclosure is made shall not take part in the deliberation of the meeting on that matter. Section 12 covers the prohibition of unauthorised disclosure of information. A person shall not disclose confidential information obtained by him or her while performing duties as a member of the council during meetings held to discuss the heritage fund. The provisions given under sections 11 and 12 of the Bill are standard. I have ensured that the provisions in this Bill do not give rise to any potential conflict between the roles of the directors or chief executives as council members and their role towards their respective boards. Section 13 deals with penalties and is broadly a standard provision.
Since this Bill was first published, it has come to my attention that questions have been raised about the future of the existing tax relief scheme for donations of important national heritage items. I stress that the provisions contained in the Heritage Fund Bill, 2001, are entirely separate from, but complementary to, the provisions already contained in the scheme for tax relief for donation of heritage objects, as provided for under section 1003 of the Taxes Consolidation Act, 1997 – formerly section 176 of the Finance Act, 1995. Members may be aware of the success of this latter scheme in attracting the donation of important national heritage items to the Irish national collections. A tax credit equal to the value of the heritage item or items donated is allowed to the donor, which can then be credited against particular tax liabilities incurred by the donor.
This scheme for tax relief for the donation of heritage objects has resulted in many outstanding artefacts and collections being donated to the various national cultural institutions. For example, the Brian Friel archive was donated to the National Library of Ireland. This archive comprises all original workings and manuscripts of all Brian Friel's plays, as well as large quantities of his correspondence with other contemporary Irish writers and artists. Under the tax donation scheme, the National Gallery of Ireland acquired the beautiful and delightful painting entitled "A Musical Party" by the Dutch artist Gerrit van Honthorst. Another important donation concerns a collection of modern art, the Maurice Foley collection. This collection comprises a varied collection of 20th century art, which was donated to the Irish Museum of Modern Art. This was an important addition to the museum's collection.
I emphasise that the existing tax relief scheme for donations of important national heritage items will continue in tandem with the heritage fund. They are two separate schemes but I believe that both mechanisms can work alongside one another to ensure that the national cultural institutions build substantially on their present collections.
Members will understand that it is not possible, nor is it wise, to forecast what will be purchased for the institutions under the Heritage Fund. It is, however, worth mentioning the acquisition of the Circe manuscript just 12 months ago. I was successful in acquiring this incredible 27-page manuscript for the National Library of Ireland, which is regarded as the centrepiece of James Joyce's masterpiece, Ulysses. The sale of this exceptional Joyce manuscript attracted a lot of interest and there was an uneasy feeling that its eventual home may not have been Ireland. I took steps to ensure that this did not happen, because apart from some note sheets in the British Library, there is no other Ulysses material in Ireland and indeed throughout the whole of Europe. Circe is a magnificent treasure and there was a possibility that it could been lost to a private collector or an overseas library. Over a year ago, there was no statutory fund and it was only possible to acquire this outstanding artefact because of additional funding made available by my colleague, the Minister for Finance. The manuscript was purchased for $1.4 million or £ 1.385 million. I am pleased to say that the manuscript is now on exhibition in the National Library and has been viewed by many visitors. It is also available to Joycean scholars and academics and has been described as one of the most intriguing Joyce manuscripts as it produces many insights concerning the composition of Circe and of Ulysses.I stress the importance of the heritage fund as it will be the first time that the national collecting cultural institutions will have additional funding to enable them to expand their collections with significant and important artefacts. Senators will appreciate that £3 million or €3.809 million has already been provided for in my Department's Estimate for this year for payment into the fund when established. Clearly, given the time frame, it is critical that this Bill be enacted in the current financial year and I would welcome the co-operation of the House in securing this objective. I look forward to hearing the contributions during this debate.