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Some protesters that occupied buildings on Moore Street in Dublin in January. RollingNews.ie

Government challenge over Moore Street battlefield site likely to be paid for out of centenary commemoration fund

Minister for Arts and Heritage Heather Humphreys announced where the funds would come from last week in a committee.

OPPOSITION TDS AND relatives’ groups have hit out at the Government after it was announced that funds to challenge a High Court decision declaring Moore Street an historic battlefield site would likely be taken from the centenary commemoration fund.

The High Court declared Moore Street in Dublin – the site of the 1916 rebels’ surrender – an historic battlefield site in March.

The decision meant that planned works by the Government to convert Nos 14-17 Moore Street (which have National Monument status) into a commemoration centre could not go ahead.

The decision was met with support and enthusiasm by various 1916 relatives’ groups, as well as by politicians from Sinn Féin and AA-PBP among others.

These groups have long argued that the Moore Street area should be designated as a battlefield site and preserved as such.

The Government announced in June that it would challenge the High Court decision, stating that it posed risks and problems for planning across the country.

8/1/2016. People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Bar AAA-PBP TD Richard Boyd Barrett addresses people at a rally at Moore Street in January. RollingNews.ie RollingNews.ie

“The judgement extends the scope of national monument status, setting a precedent which could affect a wide range of vital infrastructure projects,” Minister for Arts and Heritage Heather Humphreys said at the time.

Last week, Humphreys appeared before the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs.

She said that costs for the legal challenge would likely come from the commemoration fund used to pay for projects and initiatives surrounding the Decade of Centenaries.

In response to a question from Sinn Féin TD Peadar Tóibín – who is also chair of the committee – about how much the challenge would cost and where the funding would come from, Humphreys said:

It is under review at the minute, it hasn’t materialised but when it does come out it should come out under the B subhead.
“There’s a subhead there for commemoration – A 15″

The A 15 subhead is the expenditure provision created in 2014 to support the funding of projects and initiatives to do with the “Decade of Centenaries 1912-1922″.

It provides the funding used – for example – for the 2016 Centenary Programme to commemorate the 1916 Rising.

Humphreys also said that the legal costs “haven’t materialised yet” and so it was impossible to say how much would be incurred.

humphreys Heather Humphreys appearing before the committee last week.

Criticism

Speaking to the TheJournal.ie, Peadar Tóibín said that it was “ironic” that the Government might use money from this fund to pay any potential legal costs.

“Is it not ironic to pay for a High Court case [with commemoration funds] that looks to reduce the National Monument scope and breadth, which in itself pays tribute to those who fought in 1916,” he said.

That the Government is now seeking to use the funds assigned for the commemoration of these men and women to pay for this legal battle, is profoundly shocking.

toibin Peadar Tóibín pictured at the committee last week. Oireachtas.ie Oireachtas.ie

Donna Cooney, of the the 1916 Relatives Association, also criticised the statements by the minister, saying that it “beggars belief” that the commemoration fund would be used.

In reply to a query about funding from TheJournal.ie, a spokesperson for the Department of Heritage said that the costs would not be determined until the case in concluded.

“If the State wins its appeal it would normally have no liability for legal costs,” the spokesperson said.

Any costs awarded against the State would in the first instance be assessed by the Chief State Solicitor’s Offices.

The spokesperson said then that any discussion of costs at this stage was “premature and speculative”.

Works to redevelop the National Monument at Moore Street have been halted on the back of the High Court decision in March.

Recent minor refurbishment and renewal works are ongoing, however, which the department says are to “preserve and protect the buildings”.

Read: “I’m losing money every day while nothing is being done… it’s a nightmare” – How Moore Street’s traders have been forgotten about

Read: There was an “unlawful entry” at the Moore St battlefield site this morning

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32 Comments
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    Mute Stephen Duggan
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    Oct 4th 2016, 6:09 AM

    Only in Ireland, I swear to F##K, ONLY IN IRELAND!!!!

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    Mute Gerard McConnell
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    Oct 4th 2016, 7:47 AM

    Is there a bigger clown masquerading as a politician than dear Heather, not in my opinion. This is utterly pathetic!

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    Mute Coles
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    Oct 4th 2016, 8:51 AM

    Pascal ‘Donohoe’ maybe?

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    Mute Mr Phil Officer
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    Oct 4th 2016, 11:49 AM

    Humphreys is on a personal crusade to flatten Moore St.

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    Mute AJ McLaughlin
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    Oct 4th 2016, 1:50 PM

    @Stephen Duggan: Heather Humphreys has a neck like a jockey’s b@ll@x! She loathes the idea of Moore Street as a legally recognised and protected battlefield. She’d be fighting tooth and nail if some dodgy developer wanted to build a shopping centre and hotel (with no windows) on beloved Battle of the Boyne site.

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    Mute Brian Connaughton
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    Oct 4th 2016, 5:57 PM

    @Stephen Duggan: This TG4 documentary from 2012 on property developers and planning in Dublin city, including Moore Street, is well worth watching.

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    Mute Brian Connaughton
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    Oct 4th 2016, 6:04 PM

    @Brian Connaughton: Mae culpa.
    Here’s the link https://youtu.be/k07qja5JJlU

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    Mute
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    Oct 5th 2016, 1:46 AM

    @Stephen Duggan:
    Ironic. Moore street being fought over by sell-offs and sell-outs. Meanwhile more rightful heirs of Ireland’s ancestral struggles give it a bit of a truth makeover !!
    Unsovereign Nation Once Again
    http://www.thephora.net/forum/showthread.php?t=109717

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    Mute Gerard McConnell
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    Oct 5th 2016, 1:54 AM

    Cheers Brian, will give that a watch.

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    Mute Mise Éire
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    Oct 5th 2016, 9:08 AM

    Has anyone like Dermot Ferriter dispassionately assessed the overall historical importance of the specific building in question in relation to the 1916 story? I know the general relevance and it’s not that significant on the face of it. My guess is people of that time would like us to respectfully commemorate the event at the spot but also that we move on and develop the area with a mix of civic space and retail to keep the city centre vibrant and alive.

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    Mute Mick12
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    Oct 4th 2016, 7:08 AM

    What a f*cking joke, every other country celebrate there history. This shower and last few Government’s are wasting time and money. Moore St should have been preserved and built many year’s ago to commemorate the founding fathers heroic fight for independence. The whole lot off the shites piss me off.

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    Mute Steve McMahon
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    Oct 4th 2016, 7:00 AM

    Bad enough that the government don’t listen to its people but now it won’t listen to the high court either and then to use money from the fund to fight both only adds salt to the wounds .. Seems like their cutting off the nose just to spite the face

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    Mute lavbeer
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    Oct 4th 2016, 7:39 AM

    Don’t listen to reports from inquiries if judges either.

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    Mute Dave Doyle
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    Oct 4th 2016, 8:35 AM

    Once again FG shows its true Blueshirt colours. A shopping center is of much more importance that a commemoration site.
    Our history must be watered down, and our historic site on Moore St must go to make way for a shopping center.
    One more example of where FG’s real interests lie.

    64
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    Mute Deborah Behan
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    Oct 4th 2016, 11:33 AM

    Using funds meant to commentate the heroes of 1916 to deny their last battle site as found by a court of law to build a shopping centre. Yep sounds like FG.

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    Mute
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    Oct 5th 2016, 1:50 AM

    @Dave Doyle:
    And people are more important than buildings, so do you think the buildings mean anything when the Irish and their culture are no longer the majority or even present on the street. You can fight for all the buildings you want, but all that history and buildings mean nothing without the Irish.

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    Mute Mick12
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    Oct 4th 2016, 8:03 AM

    Alpha Moore St is just as important as the GPO. The fight started in the GPO and the surrender happened on Moore St, they are both very important part’s off the nation’s history you can’t have one without the other.

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    Mute alphanautica
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    Oct 4th 2016, 7:21 AM

    Investment in O’Connell Street as a historic street, particlarly The GPO makes far more sense.

    Moore street is a kip, and preserving buildings that didn’t exist in 1916 is an impossible task – unless you flatten them to restore them to how they truly were in 1916.

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    Mute Danny Rafferty
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    Oct 4th 2016, 7:29 AM

    That’s being disingenuous alpha, and you know it is. The rest of your statement says more about you than the street itself.

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    Mute Raymond K. Quirke
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    Oct 4th 2016, 10:30 AM

    @Danny Rafferty: Very well said Danny.

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    Mute Barry Lyons
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    Oct 4th 2016, 3:33 PM

    The minister cannot say that she does not know/ was misinformed etc.She knows exactly what she is doing, it has been pointed out to her on numerous occasions,both to her face and in writing.She and her dept have received detailed reports as to the significance of the area. Yet the state continue to wheel out the same developers architect ,the very same one who worked for the developer .
    It is no accident that this is happening and it seems like the minister will not stop until the street is flattened .Looking after the boys and to hell with the public and public opinion,.

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    Mute Brian Connaughton
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    Oct 4th 2016, 5:55 PM

    @Barry Lyons: Well said Barry. Nothing has changed in Irish politics, despite all the post-election talk.
    Heather Humphreys should not be allowed next nor near anything to do with Irish heritage but to seek to use funds from the 1916 Commemorations in order to demolish part of a significant historical site is beyond belief.

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    Mute Mr Phil Officer
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    Oct 4th 2016, 11:45 AM

    Wonder what FF the Republican Party think should be done with Moore St.

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    Mute Eamonn
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    Oct 4th 2016, 2:24 PM

    Classic Fine Gael. What a tragedy that they are in government in 2016. It wouldn’t surprise me if one of the options on the table in the Brexit negotiations is Enda offering us back into the UK. The blueshirts would love to be back with the Motherland.

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    Mute FlopFlipU
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    Oct 4th 2016, 9:18 AM

    The building is in bad shape ,a big commitment is needed to restore it ,I wonder how many of the authors on this page have actually went down to see the site ,I would like to see something to be done with it and done tastefully

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    Mute Raymond K. Quirke
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    Oct 4th 2016, 10:29 AM

    @FlopFlipU: I’ve visited the buildings, I have over 20 years architectural experience and believe it will be easy to preserve all the buildings on Moore Street.

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    Mute Mr Phil Officer
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    Oct 4th 2016, 11:54 AM

    Kilmainham used to be in bad shape but with a little vision it has now become one of the tourist industries greatest assets.

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    Mute AJ McLaughlin
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    Oct 4th 2016, 2:58 PM

    @FlopFlipU: The buildings are in awful state because the developer whom owned them allowed that to happen. They are now legally protected.
    TG4 did a brilliant documentary (2012) on the different developers, planning officials and politicians involved in the ruination of these parts of Dublin.

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    Mute Barry Lyons
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    Oct 4th 2016, 3:26 PM

    @FlopFlipU: there is more than 1 building ..a lot of people have spent a lot of time trying to persuade various governments about the importance of the site ,its the most important site in modern Irish history according to the national museum

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    Mute Brian Connaughton
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    Oct 4th 2016, 5:58 PM

    @AJ McLaughlin: This is the TG4 documentary, brilliant! https://youtu.be/k07qja5JJlU

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    Mute Paul Lane
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    Oct 4th 2016, 3:26 PM

    Pond life fg treason

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    Mute steve white
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    Oct 5th 2016, 2:25 PM

    its called deliberate dereliction guys and you fell for it

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