Clare County Council has confirmed it has received a financial support package from government to facilitate the transfer of the Clare assets of Shannon Heritage from Shannon Airport Group to the Local Authority.
The multi-annual support package will be presented to Elected Members of Clare County Council for their consideration in the coming days.
Discussions between Clare County Council, Shannon Airport Group and Department officials regarding regulatory issues are ongoing.
Clare County Council wishes to acknowledge the cooperation of government in working with the local authority and Shannon Airport Group to enable the proposed transfer. Clare County Council also acknowledges that Bunratty, Craggaunowen, Knappogue and the Cliffs of Moher gift shop are integral to the overall tourism product offering in Clare.
A further statement will be issued following the meeting of Elected Members a council spokesperson said.
It’s understood that a financial package of €6m funding has been offered to support the transfer is being proposed for 2023. This is believed to funding represent almost 100% of the funding requirement for 2023 put forward by the Council. Once this transfer is complete, further funding opportunities will be available to the Council in 2024 and 2025.
Clare Independent TD Michael McNamara, who first proposed the transfer of the Clare assets of Shannon Heritage to Clare County Council in 2020, has welcomed the approval by Cabinet of a financial support package to facilitate the move.
Deputy McNamara has expressed his hope that the support package would meet Clare County Council’s needs for taking on Bunratty Castle & Folk Park, Craggaunowen, Knappogue Castle and the Cliffs of Moher gift shop and that Elected Members would sign off on the proposal when they meet with Council officials later this week.
“In the summer of 2020, I went to Clare County Council to propose that the local authority express its interest in taking over the sites having discussed the matter directly with staff of Shannon Heritage and Shannon Airport Group management. My main concern at the time was that the necessary investment wasn’t being made in the sites and they were not being promoted in the to the extent envisaged when the Shannon Group was established,” added Deputy McNamara, who has consistently raised the issue in Dáil Éireann over the past three years.
He continued, “It’s been an unnecessarily protracted process since this initial meeting, which has been damaging to tourism in the county and has been deeply unfair on staff of Shannon Heritage. I commend Clare County Council for its perseverance in pursuing the transfer, particularly when satisfactory engagement from the relevant government departments wasn’t always forthcoming.”
“I am delighted that we are now edging closer to the proposed transfer becoming a reality. I have every confidence that Clare County Council, given in its lengthy track record in delivering for Clare tourism, will further enhance these important attractions for the betterment of tourism in the county and the local economy. The Council and its Elected Members now need to be given the time and the space to consider this support package and I look forward to the outcome of this process. It’s key that these measures do not detract in any way from local authorities’ core functions, which I am sure will be considered by the Elected representatives and the Council executive in the coming days,” concluded Deputy McNamara.