The Government have doubled down on their refusal to provide funding to facilitate the reopening of Dunguaire Castle in Kinvara, according to Sinn Féin TD for Galway East, Louis O’Hara, who raised the matter in the Dail with Minister for Local Government, John Cummins.
Galway County Council have been in talks with the castle’s current owners, the Shannon Group, on acquiring the site. However they have estimated that it could cost in the region of millions to bring the castle up to a safe standard to open to the public, and cannot progress the purchase without a Government funding commitment.
Deputy O’Hara has called on the Minister to provide the necessary funding to Galway County Council given the importance of the site to the local community in terms of heritage, employment and tourism.
“The Minister outlined a number of funding streams, which O’Hara said were insufficient. The issue is not just the purchase of the castle but also bringing it up to a safe standard. As outlined, Galway County Council estimates that could cost millions of euro,” he said, adding that the grant schemes the Minister has outlined, such as one offering €100,000, will not be sufficient for Galway County Council to acquire the castle and bring it back into use.
“The Minister mentioned some of the Clare assets of the Shannon Group that were purchased by Clare County Council. Government funding of €6 million was provided at the time to facilitate the purchase of those assets.
“If the Government is prepared to do this for Clare County Council, why not Galway County Council? The Government needs to step up to the plate and ensure Dunguaire Castle is brought back into use. We are receiving excuses as to why this cannot happen,” added Dep O’Hara.
“Our local authority in Galway is cash-strapped. It is one of the worst-funded local authorities in the State as a result of consistent Government underfunding over many years. Our council is not in a position to take this on without Government support. It is very frustrating for us in Galway that we seem to be constantly neglected by the Government, particularly in this instance.
In response, Minister Cummins said that the transfer of sites to Clare County Council did receive Government funding, but that the circumstances were more complex.
“The transfer of four sites was exceptionally complex and involved the transfer of staff. St. John’s Castle was transferred to Limerick City and County Council without any financial support from the Government.
“That is why I have outlined several schemes available to assist local authorities in maintaining and upgrading our built heritage assets. Those schemes are set out as I set out in my original remarks and I will be more than happy to work with Galway County Council regarding them, but there is a difference between providing funding to one site as opposed to four whose transfer was complex and involved the transfer of staff,” he concluded.
