Written Answers Nos. 65-71
65. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht further to Parliamentary Question No. 52 of 8 December 2015, how confident she is that the evidence regarding the effect of coursing on hare populations that forms the basis of the decision to issue licences for hare coursing is valid, given the last hare survey of Ireland took place almost a decade ago in 2007. [13118/16]
View answerHares are a protected species under the Wildlife Acts and may only be hunted during the prescribed Open Season. There is also a facility under these Acts to issue a licence for coursing.
I am advised that there is no current evidence that hare coursing has a significant negative impact on hare populations. The most recent population estimate for the Irish hare - undertaken in 2007 - was 535,000 animals. Coursing Clubs affiliated to the Irish Coursing Club catch in the region of 5,500 hares each coursing season, equivalent to approximately 1% of the national resource. I am further advised that more than 95% of the hares captured for hare coursing are returned to the wild each year. In addition, independent scientific studies have estimated that hare mortality during captivity and coursing in Ireland is equivalent to less than 0.1% of the total adult hare population annually.
My Department has been working with the National Biodiversity Data Centre to collate distribution records for all Irish mammals. The most recent map of these records, which are available online, show that the Irish hare remains very widespread throughout the country.
The Irish hare is also listed on Annex V of the EU Habitats Directive and this means that my Department is required to undertake an assessment of its conservation status every six years. The most recent conservation assessment, undertaken in 2013, identified changes in agricultural practises, in particular intensification of grassland usage, as the main pressure facing the hare. Nonetheless, the overall assessment considered the species to be in a favourable conservation status and concluded that “...the hare is widespread and common in Ireland with a broad habitat niche. None of the identified threats are considered likely to impact on its conservation status.”
The next EU Habitats Directive assessment is due in 2019. In advance of that, my Department will review the need for a new national hare survey to inform that report and provide up to date information on the population status of this species in Ireland.
68. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht how she will work in conjunction with the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources to prioritise broadband provision in rural areas; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [13114/16]
View answerDelivering the National Broadband Plan is a top priority for Government, as reflected in the Programme for a Partnership Government. The allocation of new responsibilities at Cabinet level also signals the Government’s firm intention to address broadband and other telecoms challenges in rural Ireland. To this end, I will be working closely with the Minister for Communications, Climate Change and Natural Resources to deliver key elements of the National Broadband Plan and to accelerate and prioritise the rollout of the programme in rural areas.
Under the new arrangements, the Department of Communications, Climate Change and Natural Resources will continue with the procurement process for the State Broadband Intervention, which commenced in December 2015. The next stage in that process is to qualify potential bidders and to invite those shortlisted bidders to engage in detailed formal dialogue.
Meanwhile, my own Department will focus on establishing county/regional broadband taskforces, in which Local Authorities, Local Enterprise Offices, LEADER Groups and other relevant agencies will immediately engage with communities and with the telecoms industry in order to eliminate delay factors in advance and enable effective rural broadband delivery once a contract(s) has been awarded under the National Broadband Plan procurement.
As committed to in the Programme for a Partnership Government, within the first 100 days a Mobile Phone and Broadband Taskforce will be established, co-chaired by my Department and the Department of Communications, Climate Change and Natural Resources. It will also include other relevant Departments, ComReg, the County and City Management Association (CCMA), relevant agencies and the telecommunications industry. The Taskforce will address existing barriers in the areas of infrastructure planning, road opening/reinstatement and environmental consents, industry investment and any other measures which could address telecommunications deficits in rural Ireland.
The two Departments will also establish a joint working group to ensure that the procurement and rollout planning are progressed in parallel and as a priority.
69. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if she is satisfied with the current State expenditure on culture as a percentage of gross domestic product, which according to Council of Europe data was 0.11% of GDP in 2012 as opposed to a European average of 0.6% in the same year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [13258/16]
View answerThe Programme for a Partnership Government contains a very important commitment to work to progressively increase funding to the arts, including the Arts Council and the Irish Film Board, as the economy continues to improve.
I can assure the Deputy that I will be engaging with my colleagues in Government and with the Oireachtas to seek to advance this commitment in the context of the forthcoming estimates and budgetary processes.
The figures quoted from the Council of Europe are from a project called Compendium - Cultural Policies and Trends in Europe. I understand that many European counties are not included in the figures, including ten EU member states. The data for the Compendium project are provided by independent researchers and it is not a standardised system for collection of statistics.
I further understand that the Compendium itself warns that data provided by the researchers are not comparable across countries because each researcher includes different elements in the definition of culture and these elements are reflected in the figures for public expenditure. Figures can also include some, or all, of national, regional or local expenditure.
The issue of a definition of culture and of capturing public expenditure on culture is one which was discussed in the public consultation process that was held for the purpose of developing Ireland's first national cultural policy, Culture 2025. This will be reflected in the draft policy document which I intend to submit to Government for consideration in the coming weeks.
Expenditure on the arts in Ireland comes from multiple sources, both public and private. I understand that the CSO does not produce national statistics that capture the totality of this expenditure as a percentage of GDP. However, I do consider that further research on this issue is warranted in the context of Culture 2025.
70. Deputy Kate O'Connell asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if she can provide an update on the planned capital works at the National Library of Ireland; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [13111/16]
View answerThe National Library is one of our foremost National Cultural Institutions, charged with collecting, preserving, promoting and making accessible the documentary and intellectual record of the life of Ireland.
The Library holds part of its collection in an historic Victorian-era building in Kildare Street that would not meet modern standards in terms of environmental and other controls. In this regard, I was pleased, last November, to announce a major new capital investment plan for the National Library's historic Kildare Street premises, as part of the Public Capital Programme Building on Recovery 2016-2021. I have earmarked an allocation of €10m in funding for the first phase of the works.
The investment will be delivered as a phased programme of works in partnership with the Office of Public Works (OPW). The OPW is currently working on plans, in conjunction with the Library and my Department, and will shortly present a design scheme. I would expect works to start in 2017.
The redevelopment will address the following key areas:
- Refurbishment of the 1890s building to meet modern standards for universal access, fire prevention, health and safety, circulation, security, mechanical and electrical services, and environmental sustainability;
- Upgrading and enhancement of visitor and reader facilities;
- Upgrading the conditions in which heritage collections are kept;
- Improvement of both access and security;
- Upgrading and rationalisation of operational areas; and
- Provision of better linkages throughout the Library’s extended buildings complex.
I am confident that the investment plan will help transform the Library into a world-class facility for the storage and display of some of our most important historical documents. It will not only allow the Library to deliver on its core objectives of protecting and conserving the national collection, but will also enable it to develop its place as a venue for research, culture, learning and tourism.
71. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Taoiseach why he did not nominate a Minister with specific responsibility for infrastructure; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13986/16]
View answerThe term infrastructure covers a number of different areas which fall under the responsibility of a range of individual Ministers. I believe that it is appropriate that the different Ministers lead in respect of infrastructure issues within their areas of responsibility. The Cabinet Committee system will continue to be used to ensure an appropriate "whole of Government", coordinated approach to infrastructure issues and delivery, as necessary.
