Vol. 439 No. 3
14 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht the number of applications he has received from the development of arts centres in major centres of population; the amount of funding being sought; and the criteria, if any, he will apply for the allocation of funding.
38 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht the number of applications he has received from the development of arts centres in major centres of population; the amount of funding being sought; and the criteria, if any, he will apply for the allocation of funding.
56 Mr. G. Mitchell asked the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht the number of applications he has received for the development of arts centres in major centres of population; the amount of funding being sought; and the criteria, if any, he will apply for the allocation of funding.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 14, 38 and 56 together.
I have received more than 20 unsolicited applications from various groups seeking support for local arts centres. These submissions are for projects indicating varying degrees of development in terms of costings and feasibility.
The funds available to my Department for arts and culture are primarily earmarked for the main cultural institutions such as the National Museum, the National Library and the National Concert Hall. However, the Structural Funds which have been placed at my disposal under the National Development Plan 1994-99 will enable me to undertake a major investment in these institutions. Funds are also available to me to support new arts and cultural infrastructure and, since the national cultural institutions are all based in Dublin, I am already on record as saying that I intend to ensure a balance of investment between the capital city and the regions. However, until discussions with the European Commission on the National Development Plan have been completed I am not in a position to say to what extent such arts and cultural centres can be funded from the Structural Funds.
Under the community employment schemes does the Minister see potential for the development of arts centres and job creation within these centres? Will the Minister support existing arts centres? Will he seek European funding for the development of these centres once he has dealt with the national cultural institutions? Will the arts centres be a central part of the plan under consideration for Structural Funds?
The national cultural institutions will have to be assisted by Structural Funds. Many deserving projects have been put forward for funding and we must be careful to address the issue of the regional balance. In some parts of the country there is no provision for arts, in others, there are buildings which may be in bad repair and where very little activity takes place while in other areas there is a great deal of activity but the centres are badly funded. I intend to use the Structural Funds to deal with these deficiencies. In all 20 projects have been submitted to me for funding and in a great number of these cases no sum of money has been specified. Some have feasibility plans while others have not and some applied to other agencies for funding. These applications will be considered in a balanced way to see if the deficiencies can be eliminated. The Community Enterprise Development Programme will include a cultural component. I intend to use creativity in the arts and cultural area in an effective, job producing way.
In terms of the 20 applications the Minister has received, is it likely that over the six year period of the Structural Funds all those applications will be grant-aided if they qualify? What information should those applicants supply to help advance their chances of being grant-aided?
It would be extraordinary to say that all applications received will be funded.
If they meet the requirements?
Question No. 24 requests details of the sums available in my area of responsibility. The total amount is £240 million of which local authority supported projects will receive £27 million. When the European negotiations have concluded it will be possible to consider this matter in an orderly way. In mentioning these projects I am not criticising them. There has been a certain enthusiasm for projects. There is a requirement that there be a 25 per cent local contribution and applications are usually accompanied by a feasibility plan. It is also possible to integrate projects.
Have any applications been made by local authorities for support for the library service, which includes the most important local cultural centre in any area and which, sadly, has been neglected for many years? Does the Minister intend that some of the Structural Funds will be made available to the arts projects being developed in the partnership areas?
Provision for the library service is the responsibility of my colleague, the Minister for the Environment. However, I share the Deputy's view on the importance of libraries. Over a long period there has been a run down in stocks and in services provided by libraries. I will communicate the Deputy's views to the Minister for the Environment. As regards the partnership projects, one of the great advantages of recognition of the arts and cultural area is that it will be represented in terms of the design of projects. There are many very fine, valuable projects and they will certainly feature. Before the completion of discussions it would be wrong to give an indication as to where we are going. On the question of library services, one local authority has written to me in that regard.
When will the discussions to which the Minister referred be completed? When will we know what the amount of Structural Funds for the arts will be? Is the matter under active consideration and is there any dispute about the amount being sought?
I would tell Deputy Quill, whose enthusiasm for the arts I share, that I could have spent twice the figure provided for in the national plan in promoting arts and culture. The figure is justified and no difficulties have been communicated to me. It is reasonable to assume that we will know before the summer the amount that will be available. In answer to an earlier question today I gave details of the areas in which money will be spent. The figures are included in the national plan and will be drawn down from different operational programmes.
Will the Minister indicate if the level of grant aid, 100 per cent, 60 per cent, etc., has already been decided for projects approved and sanctioned? Will he also indicate whether lottery funding will be allocated to such projects?
Although I very rarely say so, this is to some extent an extension of the question. Nevertheless, I am anxious to provide as much information as I can. All I can do at this stage is give my best estimate of the likely European requirements for projects. It is possible there will be a requirement for a 25 per cent private or local contribution and that State property will not qualify for a local or private contribution. I will seek to ensure that the requirements are as flexible as possible and it would not be helpful if I indicated at this stage what I believe the final mix will be, for example, some institutions may be in a better position than others to provide the 25 per cent private or local contribution. Obviously, that is where the national plan comes into play, and we will have to look at the matter then.
Could this grant aid system be extended to cover heritage houses open to the public? The Minister will be aware that many heritage houses, a few in particular, are major repositories of works of fine art and art of an historical value. While these houses are open to the public many of them are very much in need of improvement in terms of preservation as well as the presentation of works of art. Will the Minister be amenable to accepting applications from this source?
I have no doubt that many people will make applications for grant-aid, and I am not here to encourage or discourage such applications. The large number of applications shows an increased consciousness among people of the value of heritage and the importance of cultural and arts activity. It is very clear that one should approach this issue in a planned way, with a strategy, rather than approaching it in an ad hoc manner. I will look at applications in a planned way and see how projects meet the cultural-arts deficiency.
In the interests of transparency in the allocation of funding for these art centres and given the variations in the applications which have been submitted to him, will the Minister consider publishing the criteria on which he will allocate funding for the development of these art centres? Will other Departments also be involved in their funding?
With regard to the first question, when agreement has been reached in the discussions about the projects to be funded it would make sense to have uniform procedures, and I will bear the Deputy's suggestion in mind.
With regard to participation by other Departments, I have responsibility for Arts, Culture, the Gaeltacht and heritage, including waterways, and I am endeavouring to deal with these issues in an integrated way. For example, it is possible to meet a heritage and an arts provision objective in the same way, getting better value for public money and using it more economically, with greater benefits. The same is true about possible interaction between the Gaeltacht section and some of the other sections for which I have responsibility. There are obvious projects where the co-operation of other Departments will be needed and I am not anticipating any difficulty in this regard. It is very important to recognise that there will be significant gains in employment and training from any contribution in the areas of arts and culture. Many other areas will also benefit from such contributions and there must be positive co-operation between Departments to ensure maximum benefit from the funding.
In responding to my question about public libraries, the Minister indicated he was prepared to convey my concerns to the Minister for the Environment, which I appreciate. However, when I raised this matter with him on an earlier occasion he undertook to consult the Minister for the Environment about the way in which his Department and the Department of the Environment could combine to ensure that the library service is improved and enhanced. The service in my area has been very badly hit by lack of funding and in some cases libraries are virtually unable to open for any prolonged length of time. The library service is essential to the provision of arts services in my area. I appeal to the Minister to actively pursue the question of assisting the public library service. Will he undertake to look at——
Brevity, please.
——the possibility of assisting local organisations, particularly community organisations, in the refurbishment of older buildings which may not necessarily come within the criteria established for heritage style development — all our built environment was not in place 200 or 300 years ago?
I recall the Deputy raising this matter previously in the House. There are two dimensions to the library question as it affects my Department; the first relates to the Library Council and the second to buildings, etc. I will continue my discussions with the Department of the Environment about the library service which is of great importance at a time of high unemployment. It is also used by many elderly people. We must examine how this service can be assisted.
With regard to the second part of the question, it would be a great pity if genuinely good projects based on artscultural initiatives were lost because they did not come within the criteria of any one scheme. I have examined the possibility of piloting certain schemes which may be the forerunner of schemes which receive more general provision. It is very important that there is flexibility to extend initiatives so that people who want to do something are encouraged. I will look at this matter in a very sympathetic way.
