Vol. 440 No. 4
332 Mrs. T. Ahearn asked the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht if he will provide funding for the development of an arts centre in Nelson Street, Clonmel, County Tipperary; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
The funding available to my Department for arts and culture purposes is primarily earmarked for the national cultural institutions such as the National Museum, the National Library and the National Concert Hall.
However, the provision of capital for regional arts infrastructure will also be considered in the context of Structural Funding under the National Development Plan 1994-99. Since the details of the plan are currently under discussion with the European Commission, it will be some time yet before there will be final agreement on the plan's components. It will be only after this process has been completed that I will be in a position to establish precise criteria for eligibility for assistance under my capital allocations and the possibility of funding an arts centre in Clonmel will be examined in that context.
