asked the Minister for Finance if the State or any public authority owns the freehold of the cemetery at Arbour Hill, Dublin; and if ground rent is payable, the amount and the identity of the landlord.

The ground in question is part of a freehold estate which is vested in the Minister for Finance pursuant to the State Property Act, 1954. It is held under a fee farm grant which is subject to a rent charge at £110.25 per annum payable to Mrs. Mary Emily Harris and Frederick Heron Mullen, executors of the will of Reginald T. Harris per Messrs. Robert Mullen & Son, Solicitors, 9 Trevor Hill, Newry.

Am I to understand effectively that the Government are paying a rent to the beneficiaries of this estate in respect of the ground in which the bodies of some of the 1916 men lie?

That is correct. I am sure the Deputy understands that there is a difference between freehold interest and fee simple interest. In respect of fee simple interest there is no rent necessarily payable. But the Office of Public Works will approach the executors with a view to purchasing this rent.

Would the Minister not think that the people who are the beneficiaries of this estate would have been approached years ago by this Government, not least in relation to its rhetoric, to purchase the full fee simple of this plot of ground? Why has it not been done before now? Was it done because I put the question down?

The officials of my office will approach the executors with a view to purchasing this rent.

Can the Minister say when they will approach them?

In the very near future.