No play on the bandstand... Should we be fencing off our national monuments?

There has been a mixture of surprise and shock at the decision of the Office of Public Works to fence off the famous grandstand in Dublin's St Stephen's Green.

The move comes in the wake of large crowds of people gathering in the city centre lately, with big numbers congregating on St. William Street and St. Stephen's Green last weekend.

Prior to this, Portobello Plaza was fenced of for consecutive weekends and now the historic bandstand in St. Stephen's Green today. Reacting to the move, Lord Mayor Hazel Chu wrote: "Guess I'll be asking the Office of Public Works about this too as well as asking if they can keep longer opening hours in St Stephen's Green. Some DCC parks closes at 10pm, no reason why we couldn't keep the green open until then."

In a statement today, the OPW said: "St Stephen’s Green is a National Monument and Historic Park beloved by the citizens of Dublin and Ireland.

"The Green encompasses a number of important features including the Victorian Bandstand. We want visitors to enjoy the Green but OPW must also protect vulnerable historic features from vandalism and anti-social behaviour. In order to protect the historic bandstand from any further damage, a decision was taken to erect fencing to protect the structure.

"We hope visitors will continue to enjoy the beautiful surrounds of the Park this weekend. The OPW appeals to the public to respect this important heritage site and its historic features, to respect our staff and fellow visitors, to bring their waste home with them and to behave responsibly when in the Park."

"The OPW is liaising with An Garda Síochána in relation to the policing of St Stephen's Green on an ongoing basis and will respond to any incidents should they arise."