asked the Minister for Finance if he will outline the difficulties he has met in activating that portion of the archaeological survey being conducted by the Office of Public Works which covers monuments erected after 1200 A.D.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Archaeological Survey.
74.
The archaeological survey is in two parts, firstly an inventory of all monuments and secondly a scientific survey of each monument. All monuments have been included in part one of the survey. It has not been possible to make progress with part two of the survey in relation to architectural monuments, most of which are post 1200 A.D., because of the reluctance of architectural staff in the past to accept employment on work which would involve surveying only. Proposals designed to remedy this situation are under consideration.
Could the Parliamentary Secretary give any indication of the general shape of the proposals he has in mind?
The difficulty is to get the architectural staff. We are trying to find ways and means of recruiting them. We have recruited more people for the archaeological section of the National Parks and Monuments Branch recently but this is a job for architects and we find it hard to get them.
Does the Parliamentary Secretary consider the reluctance of the architectural staff to undertake purely surveying work is justifiable?
In a way, yes. The proposals we are making are a matter for consideration by the Government and I cannot say anything about them until the Government have given me a decision on them.