498. Deputy Tom Barry asked the Minister for Education and Skills the cost per year, over the past ten years, of archaeological investigations on school building sites; and the way this measures as a percentage of overall spend. [39773/14]

A specific code for archaeological expenditure was only introduced at the beginning of 2011 into the Department's financial management records. Therefore, the information requested can only be supplied for the years 2011 to date and is as follows:

The calculation of archaeological expenditure as a percentage of the overall capital expenditure on the school sector in each of the years 2011 to date is as follows: