Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 8 February 2022
286. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media if her attention has been drawn to the requirements for a long-term plan to house and make accessible the national collection which is held in the care of the National Museum of Ireland; the efforts that are in place at the level of her Department to identity a solution; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6494/22]
View answerI am aware of the requirement for a long-term plan to house the national collection which is held in the National Museum of Ireland (NMI) and my Department has been engaged with both the NMI and the Office of Public Works (OPW) in relation to this matter.
As set out in the National Cultural Institutions Act 1997, the NMI relies on the OPW for the provision of all premises and building management needs, including storage for a collection of 4 million objects.
The NMI's principal storage space is based at the Collections Resource Centre (CRC) in Swords and the lease on this building is in place until 2030. My Department is engaged with the OPW and the NMI to identify an appropriate long term solution for the storage of the NMI's collections. A Project Working Group has been established to develop a Strategic Assessment Report, as per the requirements of the Public Spending Code, which outlines the key objectives and rationale for the CRC and puts forward potential solutions as a series of options. It is intended that this work will be completed in 2022.
