Heritage budgets - Cutbacks are daft

LOVERS of Irish heritage will rightly be dismayed at the severity of cutbacks in projects ranging from the upkeep of nationally important buildings to research on landscape and waterways under threat from invasive species.

Victims of swinging cuts include St Fin Barre’s Cathedral in Cork, a decision described by Dean Nigel Dunne as “daft” and “short-sighted”.

Because the state has to borrow €85 billion, due to the greed of unregulated bankers, uncontrolled developers, and unthinking Government ministers, social welfare funding and public services will be decimated. Included among the cuts are the Heritage Department (77%), National Parks and Wildlife (56%), and the Heritage Council (47% following a 30% cut in 2010).

The result of unbridled greed, this slash-and-burn policy will expose iconic buildings, endangered wildlife and sensitive environments to neglect from which they may not recover.