Minister hints at move for Abbey

The Minister for Arts, Sports and Tourism, Mr O'Donoghue, has given his strongest indication yet that the National Theatre could move from Abbey Street.

Delays and the high cost of developing the existing site gave the Government little choice but to look elsewhere for a new home for the Abbey Theatre, he said yesterday.

Mr O'Donoghue commented on the theatre's future while at the Abbey launching "A Policy Framework for Education, Community and Outreach" for the Council of Cultural Institutions.

"Given the cost acquisition and time factor of expanding the footprint of the Abbey at its present location, we have no choice but to begin looking elsewhere. The Carlton site is one that comes to mind," he said after launching the education document.

"We have the most imaginative and creative generation of our history and there is no expression of that creativity in our public architecture. Obviously, the regeneration and refurbishment of O'Connell Street would be greatly enhanced by a signature development such as our national theatre," the Minister said.

Speaking in the Dáil earlier, Mr O'Donoghue said that redeveloping the Abbey's current site would be "problematic, time consuming and expensive" and that he would prefer to see it on a new city-centre site.

Mr O'Donoghue qualified his later references to the Carlton site by acknowledging the current High Court challenge to the compulsory purchase order by Dublin City Council. No decision can be made about that site until the outcome of the court case.

He said the Government would await the outcome of the Carlton case before making a final decision about the Abbey, "provided we don't have to wait too long". He would not be pressed on how long the Government might be prepared to wait.

The director of the Abbey, Mr Ben Barnes, who attended the launch, said: "The Government and the Abbey are all very keen that a decision is made about the new theatre in this centenary year."

When Mr O'Donoghue last spoke on the Abbey in the Dáil on February 26th, he said the theatre's current site "has not been ruled out, but it is beginning to look more difficult".