asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the total amount of moneys allocated to date from the proceeds of the national lottery through his Department; the total amount of actual payments made; the total reserves still available, if any, from the national lottery; the amount likely to be spent in the current year; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Written Answers. - Lottery Fund Allocations.
71.
A total of £1.2 million has been allocated to date from the national lottery to projects within the responsibility of my Department. Four hundred thousand pounds has been allocated for the promotion of cultural relations with other countries and £800,000 has been allocated for the relief of disasters in certain countries.
Grants are made under the heading of cultural relations by the Minister for Foreign Affairs on the advice of the Cultural Relations Committee and go towards the promotion of Irish cultural and artistic events, lecture tours, etc. abroad. Grants awarded are paid on receipt of evidence of expenditure from the applicant.
The total amount of moneys allocated to date from the provision of £400,000 is £381,809.59. Of this figure, £231,132.50 has been paid to date, £150,677.09 has been committed for expenditure. The net balance available is therefore £18,190.41.
It is likely that the full allocation of £400,000 will be either expended or committed in the current year.
The Government allocated £800,000 for the relief of disasters in Sudan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Mozambique.
Of this allocation, £600,000 has been already expended and the balance will be paid out shortly.
72.
asked the Minister for Finance the total allocation to the arts, culture and heritage areas from the national lottery in 1988, both from his Department and any other Department dealing with these areas; and the proportion of lottery funds distributed which this represents.
Of the lottery funds allocated for spending in 1988, £14.614 million or 24 per cent has been allocated for spending in the arts, culture and heritage areas.