The Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science has formally distanced itself from the long-delayed €70 million National Children's Science Centre, confirming that its statutory remit is strictly focused on adult education.

In written correspondence sent to John Conlon, head of the Office of Public Works (OPW), the department's Secretary General, Colm O'Reardon, stated that the department holds no management responsibility or budgetary allowance for the proposed museum. O'Reardon noted that when the department was established, it received details of all legacy matters under its scope, and the science centre was not included among them.

"While I can appreciate the urgency of finding a solution to this matter, it is not within the remit of this department or its current budgetary considerations to assume any responsibility for the ongoing management of this project," O'Reardon wrote in the letter, emphasizing that the department's focus is on adult learners.

The project, first conceived more than 20 years ago, was intended to create an interactive science centre at the Earlsfort Terrace complex in Dublin, adjacent to the National Concert Hall. Originally estimated to cost €14.3 million in 2003, the projected delivery cost has spiralled to more than €70 million, excluding additional expenses for exhibition fit-outs and ongoing operation.

Although the OPW remains legally bound under past arbitration agreements to deliver the project in partnership with private consortium Irish Children's Museum Limited, the facility currently lacks a sponsoring government department or funding allocation under the National Development Plan.

The Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee has repeatedly raised governance and financial concerns regarding the project, warning that the ongoing legal and administrative deadlock exposes the State to significant financial risk.