The net amount sought for Vote 9—Public Works and Buildings—for this year is £26,088,000, an increase of approximately 38 per cent on the total amount voted for this purpose in 1975.
The major part of the increase is required to meet expenditure on works with a high employment content, which I will refer to in more detail as I comment on the various subheads that make up the Estimate.
Subheads A1, A2, B and C cover the administrative expenses of the Office of Public Works. Subhead A2 is a new subhead, included this year for the first time. The provision of £5,000 is required mainly to meet the balance of the cost of the Shannon Recreation Study which was commissioned jointly by the Office of Public Works and Bord Fáilte. The main objective of the study was to establish guidelines for the conservation and co-ordinated development of the River Shannon for tourist and recreation needs. The consultants' report has recently been received and, while it is still being studied, I am confident that it will be of invaluable assistance not only to the two bodies who commissioned it but to the various local authorities and other public bodies who have interests in this great natural resource.
The provision under subhead D covers purchases of sites and premises for various Government services, including the acquisition of the fee simple of some existing leasehold properties. The subhead provides also for the purchase of land required for the national monuments service and for national parks and amenity areas.
In previous years, reference was made to the policy of the National Parks and Monuments Branch of my office in relation to the creation of new national parks. Good progress was maintained in this field over the past 12 months and I am glad to report the successful conclusion of negotiations for the acquisition of two substantial areas in County Galway which will form the nucleus of a proposed Connemara National Park. A total of approximately 2,540 acres of land at Kylemore and Letterfrack are being purchased and I expect these transactions to be completed within the next few months.
With the support of Bord Fáilte a comprehensive planning study is being undertaken to assist the commissioners in formulating a long-term plan for the management and development of this park. Announcements will be made from time to time as to the extent to which the park will be available to the public for recreation.
I am confident that the creation of a national park in Connemara will in time provide a tremendous boost to the economic and social life of the region and both my office and Bord Fáilte will be working closely with Galway County Council and other local interests to achieve this end.
The amount being provided under subhead E, £9,350,000, covers the cost of new and improved accommodation for various Government Departments and the services they administer and of improved facilities for these services. This involves the implementation of a planned building programme for Dublin and the provinces. The cost of works in connection with national parks, waterways and monuments and marine works is also included under this subhead. A list of all the works for which provision is made has been supplied to Deputies. I will comment on the more significant items.
It is hoped to complete the installation this year of standby generators to provide emergency lighting for Leinster House and certain areas of the Government Buildings complex in the event of power failure.
Additional accommodation has been provided for staff of the Oireachtas and space vacated in Leinster House is being reallocated and refurbished. Further additional space has been secured and will be fitted out for use inside the next few months.
A total of £2,431,000 is provided for items falling under the heading of the Department of Finance. As usual, this heading covers a wide variety of works ranging from the fitting out of new offices for various Departments to development works at national parks and harbour improvements. Apart from provisions for some specific projects, the cost of the office building programme which was shown in this section of the subhead in previous years is now separately listed. It appears as item 170 in this year's list.
The biggest single item remaining under the Department of Finance heading is the provision for the fitting out of office blocks, mainly rented, for various Departments in Dublin and the provinces. My predecessor mentioned last year that difficulties which had been encountered in relation to the site for a new customs road station at Monaghan had been resolved and that tenders had been invited. Work is now in progress and will be completed this year. A site has been acquired for additional office accommodation, examination sheds and parking facilities for lorries at Dundalk customs road station. Planning is in hands.
Adaptation works at Government Buildings, south block, are well in hand and occupation by staff on a phased basis will commence shortly.
The new printing building for the Ordnance Survey Office is virtually completed. Staff are already in part occupation of the building.
The new buildings which my predecessor referred to last year at Drogheda, Letterkenny and Roscommon have now been occupied. It is hoped to place a contract in the near future for new offices at Ballyshannon and planning is proceeding at Navan, Waterford and Mullingar as part of the provincial office building programme.
Temporary additional accommodation is being provided in part of the former St. Vincent's Hospital premises at Lower Leeson Street for some of the State Laboratory staff. Planning is well advanced on a scheme for the adaptation for concert hall purposes of portion of the UCD premises at Earlsfort Terrace. It is hoped that it will be possible to complete the planning stage by the end of this year which would allow of a start being made on the adaptations in 1977, but this will depend on how soon the UCD authorities can release the space required.
I am glad to state that planning for the next stage of the restoration of the Royal Hospital, Kilmainham, which my predecessor mentioned briefly last year, is proceeding satisfactorily. It is hoped that tenders for building work can be invited early next year. This is a large and complex project involving as it does careful restoration and it will extend over a period of years.
Tenders have been received for the first phase of the internal rehabilitation of Scoil Éanna and a contract will shortly be placed. This phase of the work is expected to take about 18 months to complete.
Items 33-42—National Parks— accounting for a total provision of £178,000 cover developments at our national parks for the improvement of both visitor and staff facilities. A sum of £10,000 is being allocated for the provision of a Natural History Exhibition Centre and for garages, offices, stores, and so on, for the park maintenance staff at St. Enda's, Rathfarnham. It had been hoped to have these provided last year but the project was delayed. It is now expected to go ahead this year.
In introducing this Estimate last year my predecessor referred to the urgent need to instal new water supply and sewage disposal systems at Muckross House, Killarney. Difficulties were met in the course of planning the water supply scheme, the first stage of the project, and it was not until the end of the year that a contract for the work was placed. In the circumstances expenditure during 1975 was minimal. A provision of £40,000 has been made for this year. This should be adequate to complete the water supply scheme and to make a start on the sewage system, which will include tertiary treatment, the planning of which is in hands.
Items 35-37—Killarney National Park—provide for other improvements at the Bourn Vincent Memorial Park. Work on the roads development project is continuing satisfactorily and will be pursued further this year. Modern visitor facilities are proposed for Muckross House and for Gearhameen where improved staff quarters will also be provided.
Last year my predecessor expressed the hope that the picture gallery wing of Kilkenny Castle would be opened to the public later in the year. However, although good progress continued to be maintained on the work of restoring this wing it did not prove possible to complete the work on time. I do not now expect the contract to be completed until the early summer but arrangements are being made to have this part of the castle opened to the public in time for the Kilkenny Arts Week which will be held towards the end of August.
My office hope to make a start this year on the provision of additional public toilets in the Phoenix Park. During the last few years there has been comment about the need for such facilities and about the condition of those existing. It is hoped that the position will be improved in stages over the next few years.
Our overall scheme for the development of the Phoenix Park extension is still being re-examined in the light of Dublin Corporation's proposals for road improvements in the area. Although I am not yet in a position to say what the outcome of this reconsideration will be, some general developments will be undertaken during the year.
I am glad to say that we are now in a position to undertake the first of our development proposals at the recently established Glenveagh National Park. A sum of £8,000 is being allocated for the provision of car parks for visitors to the park. A number of these will be required because at present there are no such facilities at the estate. They will be provided in stages over the next few years. As in the case of Connemara, a comprehensive planning study is being undertaken for this park with the help of Bord Fáilte and in consultation with the Donegal County Council who have promised full co-operation with the scheme.
A total of £112,500 has been provided for inland waterways. This figure includes a sum of £2,000 for the continuation of the survey of the Ballinamore-Ballyconnell canal but otherwise the money is required for the development of the Shannon navigation. The River Shannon continues to grow in popularity for pleasure cruising and other recreational uses and the investment which the Office of Public Works are making in the provision of facilities is very well worth while.
The new boat harbour at Mountshannon, County Clare, has recently been completed and the new quay at Rossmore, County Galway, is nearing completion. Work will commence shortly on the new jetty at Hodson's Bay, near Athlone, and it is hoped too that, with the co-operation of Galway County Council, the provision of the new harbour at Portumna Castle will be put in hands during the year.
The restoration of the Lough Allen canal from Battlebridge to Lough Acres in County Leitrim is now at an advanced stage and I expect that within the next 12 months boats will be navigating this stretch of canal for the first time in 40 years.
A total of £61,500 is required this year for some new works in connection with the national monuments service. Last year my predecessor mentioned the proposed national heritage exhibition centre to be set up jointly by Bord Fáilte and the Office of Public Works at Cahir Castle, County Tipperary. I am glad to say that sufficient progress was made with this to enable the centre to be opened to the public in August last. However, further work remains to be done this year. In the meantime, I hope that this exhibition centre, in its admirable setting, will help to create an increased public awareness of our national heritage.
Another major work in progress is the restoration of the Vicars' Choral at the Rock of Cashel to serve as a visitors' reception area. Improved visitor facilities at Clonmacnoise are being planned. Special emphasis will be placed on attracting the river traffic on the Shannon.
Some improvements in accommodation at the depots from which the national monuments are serviced are proposed and also the setting-up of a new depot in Killarney.
Provision is again required for some new works at harbours. Good progress is expected this year with the scheme for the improvement of the landing facilities at Clare Island, County Mayo, which unfortunately suffered protracted delay due to a contractual dispute.
It is proposed to carry out a boring survey at Inishbofin, County Galway, to determine the feasibility and estimated cost of dredging a channel which is necessary to improve transport facilities and communication with the mainland.
Provision is also included for the balance of expenditure on the erection of a ramp and causeway at the Mail Boat Pier at Dún Laoghaire Harbour to enable the pier to cater for vessels with accommodation for passengers travelling with or without cars. This work, which has been completed, increases the capacity of the harbour to handle tourist and other traffic.
I need hardly say that the three schemes mentioned above are only a small portion of the total marine works programme of the Office of Public Works. The greater part of this programme is financed from the Fisheries and Gaeltacht Votes.
In regard to the provision of a building to provide office accommodation for the staff directly associated with the Public Service computer system, construction work has commenced and the building is expected to be ready by the end of 1977.
The provision for the Department of Justice amounts to £1,101,000, of which works for the Garda Síochána account for £1,041,000.
The programme for the erection of new Garda stations and the major improvement of existing stations was speeded up considerably last year and provision is made for further acceleration this year. Work was completed at 13 centres last year and is in progress at 22 centres. It is hoped that contracts can be placed for works at about 20 other centres before the end of the year. Planning is in progress in a number of other cases.
A new district headquarters has been opened at Ballyshannon and major improvements have been completed at Mountjoy and Store Street metropolitan stations. The new divisional headquarters at Limerick will be completed this year and work is proceeding on district headquarters at Castlerea and Granard. It is hoped to place contracts shortly for new buildings at Castleblayney and Newcastle West and planning is at an advanced stage for a new district headquarters at Kanturk.
Improved accommodation is being provided at a number of stations near the border to cater for additional personnel. A scheme of major improvements to Portlaoise Garda station is also expected to commence this year. The programme of improvement of the Dublin suburban stations is also proceeding. A contract for work at Swords will be placed shortly and it is hoped to commence extension works at Blanchardstown and Finglas stations later this year.
In regard to court accommodations no further progress has been possible on the provision of improved court accommodation because of site problems. It is hoped that it will be possible to make some progress with planning during the present year.
The new buildings at Athlone to house some sections of the Department of Education will be completed, it is expected, early in 1977. Installation of special equipment and the provision of storage and furnishing requirements will take some time after that. Occupation of the building is expected to take place in the latter half of 1977.
Schemes for the rewiring of the National Museum buildings and the renewal of defective stonework are being prepared.
Planning is now in hands for a scheme of adaptation works at Nos. 2/3 Kildare Street, part of the former Kildare Street Club premises, which has been acquired to provide much needed expansion space for the National Library. Planning is also proceeding for the adaptation of Nos. 1 and 1A Leinster Lane for the same purpose.
The new offices at Castlebar for the Department of Lands and for local staffs of other Departments are nearing completion and it is planned to occupy the buildings about June of this year.
Some revisions may be necessary in the plans for the new offices for Roinn na Gaeltachta in Furbo, County Galway, and this matter is under urgent consideration at present.
We now come to works for the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries for which a total of £680,000 has been provided. The items include alterations and additions to buildings at various agricultural centres, improved accommodation at the Botanic Gardens, including a new herbarium, to provide better research facilities for students, and a new office at Raphoe for the district veterinary staff. The following is some additional information on particular items.
A design team has been appointed to investigate the alternative layouts of the proposed buildings at the Botanic Gardens. A preliminary report has been submitted and planning is proceeding.
Work has commenced on the erection at Abbotstown Farm of new accommodation including laboratories and office space for the scientific and research staff of the Fisheries Division.
The performance testing station for beef bulls at Tully, County Kildare has been completed and planning is proceeding for the provision of additional facilities including a new office building and equipment store.
Proposals for the erection at Thorndale of a new building to house the butter and seed testing stations are at present under consideration in consultation with the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.
The pig progeny testing station at Thorndale is completed and in use. Planning of alterations to the old laboratory is at an advanced stage. Work should commence this year.
Planning is well advanced for the provision of a new office building for the district veterinary staff at Raphoe, County Donegal.
There is provision to meet outstanding commitments in relation to the fitting-out of the office block in Kildare Place, occupation of which was completed last year.
An enlargement of the fishery research station at Dunmore East fishery harbour centre is required to cater for the expected expansion of the station's activities.
A new training school and synoptic reporting station for the meteorological service of the Department of Transport and Power is to be built at Murrough, County Galway while new meteorological stations are proposed for Claremorris, County Mayo and Johnstown Castle, County Wexford.
A sum of £565,000 is required for works for the Department of Posts and Telegraphs. A new post office at Listowel and an extension to Phibsboro post office have been completed while a new post office at Donegal town and an extension to Letterkenny post office are in course of erection. Planning for new post offices at Clonmel, Longford, Mullingar and Tipperary is well advanced. The modernisation of Ballyhaunis and Cobh post offices is in progress while modernisation schemes are planned for Enniscorthy, Limerick, Roscommon, Thurles and Waterford post offices. A new sorting office at Baldoyle has been completed while additional sorting office accommodation at Dublin and Cork is planned. A new philatelic sales office in the GPO Arcade has been completed. The installation of a ventilation system in the central sorting office, Sheriff Street, and of a sprinkler system at St. John's Road depot are virtually completed.
In addition to the schemes covered by this Estimate, the Office of Public Works will carry out works in connection with the telephone services at an estimated cost of over £3 million which will be met from the telephone capital account.
An amount of £300,000 is provided for works for the Department of Foreign Affairs. This covers the fitting-out of new embassy buildings abroad and improvements to existing buildings.
Fitting out has been completed at the office at the UN mission in New York, the combined chancery and residence at Moscow, including furnishing of staff accommodation, the embassy office at Madrid and the offices of the consulates general at Boston and Chicago.
Work has also been finished at the chancery building in Vienna and the fitting out of the residence there will be undertaken this year. Because of the situation in Beirut progress cannot be made on the acquisition of a chancery building there; fitting out of the residence is, however, virtually complete. Improvements have been completed at Ottawa chancery and at the embassy at Paris. Other improvements being planned include the residence at Ottawa and the consulate general at New York.
A sum of £15,000 is provided for works for the Department of Social Welfare. They comprise the erection of a new employment exchange at Manorhamilton and the fitting out of premises which have been acquired in Dún Laoghaire for the purpose of an employment exchange. Planning is proceeding in both cases.
Reference was made last year to the commencement of a programme whereby the State would design and erect its own office buildings. I am glad to say that work is now in progress on stage 1 of new headquarters for the Garda Síochána on a site adjoining the Depot, Phoenix Park, and on a building at Ballsbridge, part of which will provide badly needed extra space for the veterinary college. A tender has been accepted for the new meteorological office headquarters at Glasnevin and work is expected to start in the near future. A new office building will shortly be commenced at 13-14 Earlsfort Terrace and tenders for the new geological survey office headquarters will be invited later on this year. Works are nearing completion on the refurbishing of the former nurses' home at Leeson Street which will be used to rehouse Government staffs now occupying unsatisfactory accommodation.
Planning on a number of other projects is proceeding, including a new metropolitan Garda headquarters at Ship Street and a new headquarters for the Department of Defence at Parkgate. Reference was also made last year to the proposed reconstruction of Blocks 8-10 at the east side of the entrance to the Upper Yard, at Dublin Castle. As long ago as 1956, a survey indicated that the rere of the buildings which were partly built on the moat surrounding the castle had developed cracks due to subsidence because of the depth and poor quality of the filled material on which they are built. The buildings have deteriorated further since then; they are in part dangerous and have now reached the stage where reconstruction has become urgent. Because of the historical and architectural importance and the archaeological significance of this part of the castle, the best possible advice from inside and outside the Office of Public Works is being obtained to ensure a faithful reconstruction. Before any reconstruction work is done it is proposed to arrange for an archaeological investigation of the site as was done previously before the reconstruction of the adjoining Cross Block.
This exemplifies the care which the Office of Public Works take in relation to buildings which might be affected by development schemes and in such matters they will continue their policy of calling upon outside expertise as well as upon the expert knowledge which is available within the office.
In addition to offices in Dublin and to individual projects already commented upon, this provision covers a programme for the erection of offices in the provinces where the accommodation available is inadequate and, to a large extent, of poor quality. As an immediate measure, temporary buildings have been provided for the Revenue Commissioners' staffs at Kilkenny, Sligo, Thurles and Waterford and rented accommodation has been fitted out at Dundalk, Galway, Athlone and Limerick. Planning is proceeding for the erection of permanent new Government offices at other centres including, Cork, Kilkenny, Athlone, Thurles, Sligo, Carrick-on-Shannon and Mallow.
Subhead F.1, for which an amount of £4,730,000 is sought, provides for the normal maintenance of State-owned property. This includes such varied items as Government offices, Garda Síochána stations, post offices, agricultural institutions, embassies abroad, State harbours, national parks and the River Shannon navigation. Maintenance work has, of course, a very high employment content and, for this reason, I am pleased that it has been found possible to increase the provision for this subhead by over 21 per cent. A large part of the maintenance work is done by our own direct labour staff and, in fact, almost 50 per cent of the provision will go on the wages of this staff. The other 50 per cent of the provision will, of course, help appreciably the employment situation in the private sector.
Subhead F.2 provides for the supply of replacement furniture and of additional items required for existing State buildings. Furniture for new buildings is paid for out of subhead E.
Subhead F.3, which provides for rents, shows an increased rate of expenditure over that of 1975 arising out of the leasing of new premises to accommodate additional staffs, to replace old premises which had become unsuitable and, in some cases, to clear State-owned buildings, the sites of which are to be redeveloped.
Subhead F.4 bears the cost of fuel and light for Government offices and other State-owned property. Continuing increases in the cost of all fuels account in large measure for the increase in the provision needed for this subhead.
Subhead F.5 provides for the cost of compensation and so forth arising from damage to the property of external Governments. The provision of £30,000 is required to meet outstanding expenditure on the reconstruction of the former British Embassy premises at Merrion Square. The premises were acquired by the Electricity Supply Board who carried out the reconstruction on behalf of the Office of Public Works. The work has been completed and the final statement of cost is being prepared.
Subheads G.1 to G.3 provide for expenditure in connection with the arterial drainage programme which is being carried out under the Arterial Drainage Act, 1945. Subhead G.4 is for a small residual payment in connection with work done under the River Fergus Act, 1943.
Subhead G.1 provides for the carrying out of certain hydrometric studies and of comprehensive drainage surveys which are a necessary preliminary to arterial drainage schemes. For this purpose £79,000 is requested: last year's provision was £55,000. As in the case of previous years, most of the provision of £79,000 is needed to continue hydrometric investigations: the amount included for catchment surveys is £9,000.
Deputies will be interested in developments regarding cost/benefit of drainage schemes. Studies have now been completed, on the Maigue scheme and on the Corrib/Mask/ Robe scheme. It is hoped to continue with two further studies this year on proposals for the Bonet and Boyle catchments respectively. The report on the Maigue study, the prototype in the field, has been edited and will be published shortly.
Subhead G.2 provides for expenditure on drainage works in progress. £2,321,000 is being requested this year, an increase of £367,000 over last year's provision. Operations on the Boyne and Maigue schemes are being continued and it is hoped that the Corrib/Mask/Robe scheme can be commenced about the end of the year.
Subhead G.3 provides for the maintenance of completed schemes and embankment works. £1,029,000 is being requested for 1976, an increase of £135,000 over last year's provision. The cost of the work is recoverable from the county councils and is brought to credit as an appropriation-in-aid.
A total of £850,000 is sought for subhead H for the purchase and maintenance of engineering plant and machinery, mainly for arterial drainage work, the purchase of stores and the payment of wages to the central engineering workshop staff.
Subhead I bears the cost of the construction and maintenance of coast protection schemes. The maintenance costs are repaid by the county councils involved, and the repayments are taken in as appropriations-in-aid. Six schemes are at present being maintained. The subhead provides for an outlay of £30,500 on this service. The balance of the provision, £34,500, is required for prospective outlay on a new scheme at Enniscrone, County Sligo.
The amount of £710,000 which I am requesting for the national monuments service under subhead J.1 is required to maintain the present level of conservation activity and of archaeological research as well as to allow of some desirable improvements. It seems important on the one hand to maintain the impetus given by European Architectural Heritage Year, 1975, to architectural conservation by enabling the national monuments service to set a good standard of maintenance and presentation for the monuments in its charge, and on the other hand, to do a little more to protect and investigate the great volume of information on Ireland's cultural past which lies buried in the soil in the earthworks and other field monuments which in increasing numbers are falling victims to the bulldozer.
I am happy to be able to say, however, that thanks to the co-operation of the land project, forestry and Land Commission personnel, many field monuments are now being preserved from destruction. In general, the farming community is willing to cooperate in the preservation of monuments once their significance is explained.
During the past year, major repairs have been commenced at Ross Castle, Killarney, which had become dangerous and was closed to visitors before being placed in State care by Mr. J. McShain, the former owner. Works of conservation are continuing at, inter alia, the Casino in Marino, Dublin, Portumna Castle, County Galway, Kilcooley Abbey, County Tipperary, Lusk Tower, County Dublin, Kells Priory, County Kilkenny, Charles Fort and James Fort near Kinsale, County Cork, at the Boyne Valley sites of Newgrange and Knowth, at St. MacDara's Island Church, County Galway, and at the Early Christian Monastery on Inishmurray Island, County Sligo.
Grants for archaeological research are to be made again this year on the recommendation of the Royal Irish Academy. This will enable the investigation of the major site at Knowth to continue as well as the archaeological excavation of the site of the Church of the Holy Trinity at Cork. This latter is an urban excavation and is, therefore, of importance at a time when several of our cities are about to witness the redevelopment of their most historic areas.
Concern has been expressed to me regarding unauthorised interference with historic wrecks, for example, wrecks of the Spanish Armada, in Irish territorial waters. I have arranged for urgent consideration to be given to the question of what protection the Commissioners could afford to the wrecks under the National Monuments Acts and I assure the House that any action permitted by the Acts will be taken to protect them.
I would like to see information plaques erected at all major monuments in order to heighten the interest and education value for the visitor. The coming year should see this objective achieved.
The conservation and restoration of Holycross Abbey, the cost of which is borne initially by the grant-in-aid provided by a special subhead—subhead J.2—was virtually completed by last autumn when the building was reopened for public use after three hundred years' closure. Minor completion works are still in hands but it is expected that all will be finished this year. The cost of the restoration is being refunded by the diocesan authorities. Holycross Abbey restoration was one of this country's two national projects for European Architectural Heritage Year and is attracting worldwide interest.
I have mentioned some of the most important of the activities covered by the Vote for Public Works and Buildings. It should be borne in mind that, in addition to these, the Office of Public Works are responsible for other construction work, the cost of which is met from other sources, for example, primary schools, telephone exchanges, prison buildings and harbour works for the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries and for Roinn na Gaeltachta. Expenditure on these works this year is expected to be of the order of £18 million. It will be seen, therefore, that the Office of Public Works are making a major contribution to the development of employment and of the economy generally—a fact which will, I am sure, be reflected in the Deputies' comments. I will be happy to deal, in my reply, with any points raised by them.
I will be looking forward in particular to hearing the views of Deputy Seán Moore, the Opposition spokesman for the Office of Public Works, and I would like to take this opportunity of congratulating Deputy Moore on his promotion.
I could not let this occasion pass without saying a word or two about my predecessor, the late Deputy Henry Kenny. His kindliness, sincerity and unfailing courtesy were well-known to everyone in public life not only here but throughout the country and at the time of his untimely death tributes were generously paid by both sides of this House. Since I succeeded him as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Finance, I have been impressed also by the efficient and conscientious manner in which he discharged his public duties and by the high regard in which he was held by everyone. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.
