Heritage Sites
Dail Éireann — 2026-06-16
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Aengus Ó Snodaigh (SF), Dublin South-Central

I am also gobsmacked. It is very strange because it would not cost anything to facilitate the board of visitors. The venue is there to launch the book which has been republished as a new issue. There have been private launches of books and other events in the gaol. It is a great venue to have anything. Even though it is for sale in the museum shop in the old courthouse, it still deserves to be pushed again so that the public outside, those who do not get one of the golden tickets to attend Kilmainham Gaol, can be encouraged.
So much can be said. In fairness, the Labour Party view in 1954 was that this is all nonsense, that these schemes are nonsense. There is a very interesting list of the work the volunteers carried out, down to the hours. As Máire said, her uncle spent 720 hours and that was in the first two years. They thought it would take five years and it took six or seven. The history is absolutely fantastic. I cannot find the quote now, but there is a quote from somebody early on that this was one of the best practical restorations they had seen and that we could do a lot more to encourage them. However, being rejected afterwards is the problem.
There is no mention in the response as to when the new board will be put in place. It is out of office at this stage.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-06-16/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-27T06:54:50+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-06-16