Vol. 1064 No. 3
1. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media the timeline for the replacement of the TV licence fee by direct funding from the Exchequer, managed by Coimisiún na Meán; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10148/25]
I ask the Minister to give a timeline for the replacement of the TV licence fee by direct funding from the Exchequer, managed by Coimisiún na Meán, and to make a statement on the matter.
First, I congratulate Deputy Byrne and wish her well in her role as an Opposition spokesperson. I will make it clear from the outset that there is no intention to replace the television license fee. The previous Government made a decision last July that the licence fee should be reformed and enhanced, not abolished. It is in that context that the programme for Government sets out our commitment to a strong, independent media sector that provides essential public service broadcasting, supports local journalism and upholds the freedom of the press. To achieve this, it commits to ensuring stable, sufficient funding for RTÉ and TG4 to maintain quality programming and public trust, and contains a range of specific commitments to support the independent sector to provide quality public service content. .
These commitments are underpinned by the new framework to finance public service broadcasting agreed by the Government last July, which was further reflected in the general scheme of the broadcasting (amendment) Bill, published last October. Under this framework, TG4 will continue to be financed entirely through the Exchequer, while RTÉ will be financed through the licence fee and an additional Exchequer allocation as appropriate. The broadcasting fund will be converted to a platform-neutral media fund to support public service content through the wider media sector.
Public support for public service broadcasting and public service content will be €324 million in 2025. In this context, the television licence remains an important source of revenue which, it is estimated, will contribute more than €204 million in 2025, with more than €120 million of that forecast to be raised through the sale of television licences by An Post and the balance through funding for free television licences. This funding is not only for RTÉ; 7% of the net licence fee receipts will be paid into the broadcasting fund and, ultimately, into the new media fund.
As part of its decision last July, the Government decided that the TV licence system will be underpinned by improvements in collection and compliance to maximise revenue generation. The Government reconvened the television licence technical working group to examine potential enhancements to the TV licence and agreed to provide An Post with an Exchequer allocation of €6 million over a three-year period for necessary improvements in the collection system and technology.
A vibrant, diverse, financially sustainable and independent media sector is critical to any well functioning democracy. Across Europe, the TV licence model is being phased out because it is outdated and does not work. The Minister is aware that in 2022 the Future of Media Commission recommended the TV licence fee be replaced by direct Exchequer funding in 2024. The Minister's Government chose to ignore that recommendation and kicked the can down the road by means of reform.
The Minister is aware that in the previous Dáil term, just last year, the media committee also officially recommended the TV licence fee should be abolished and replaced with Exchequer funding. The Government sat on its hands, again, and did nothing to progress this. Both of these bodies made these recommendations after long and considered discussions and consideration of all of the information required to make such a decision. They were not knee-jerk reactions to the multiple scandals - which are still unresolved in some cases - around governance and spending in RTÉ. In fact, the Future of Media Commission recommendation was made before any of the RTÉ scandals were unearthed.
The RTÉ scandals did have a knock-on effect and there was a total reduction in revenue generated by TV licence sales for the 12-month period between July 2023 and June 2024 that amounted to a reduction of €29 million compared with the year before, prior to the scandals being uncovered. When will the reform happen? We need to get timelines on this from the Minister. I appreciate his response but this issue is not going away.
The opening line of my reply made clear where the Government is on the previous Government decision but, to put it in context for the Deputy, in 2020 the total licence fee revenue was of the order of €222 million. The latest figure for 2024 is approximately €195 million. I am not sure where the Deputy thinks that money will come from in the absence of the licence fee. Does she think it should come directly from the Exchequer? If it is to come directly from the Exchequer, €200 million is a lot of money. Where does the Deputy propose we get that money? Which schemes under my Department that are currently funded to the tune of €200 million should pay the cost?
It is interesting that the Minister asks me where I would get the figures from. I have read the Minister's brief and, in the sections that detail the agencies under the remit of his Department, the annual budget for Coimisiún na Meán is blank. No figure is provided. Is the Minister considering reforming the TV licence before providing this figure or where is he at with it? It is a serious matter. Just because the TV licence is not as prominent in the headlines as it once was, that does not mean the Minister should not be paying it any attention.
I accept that the television licence is very important but €195 million is a fairly big hole. If Sinn Féin is now proposing I abolish it, I wonder where I will get €195 million. Should I get it from health, social welfare, housing or roads? That is a lot of money. If we are advocating for the abolition of a fee, the abolition of a charge, the reduction of a tax and that everybody gets everything for nothing, the Deputy might enlighten me as to where the money will come from. I do not see that substance in her question and I certainly do not see it in my Department. I do not have €195 million. If I did, I know where I would put it. There are a lot of demands for that kind of funding. If the Deputy would like to tell me where I can get €195 million, I will be delighted to know where it is.
2. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media if he will provide further details in respect of his plans to review spending by bodies under his remit and-or aegis. [9994/25]
First, I take the opportunity to wish the Minister well and congratulate him on his new role. I ask him to provide further details in respect of his plans to review spending by bodies under his remit or aegis.
Déanaim comhghairdeas leis an Teachta Farrelly. Go n-éirí go geal leis. I hope he has an enjoyable period of time here and I wish him the best of luck in his endeavours, along with the other Deputies across the House and the new Deputies I see around me.
As Minister, I have recently brought, in quick succession, two annual reports of bodies under the aegis of my Department which have raised concerns in regard to the management of taxpayers' money. The first related to a major expenditure of almost €7 million on a failed ICT project at the Arts Council and the second regarded the expenditure of almost €125,000 on a digital X-ray machine for the National Gallery which has not been useable due to the lack of a proper room to contain it.
I therefore requested the Department write to all the State bodies in the culture, sport and media sectors under the aegis of my Department, seeking information with regard to expenditure on capital projects since 2020 to provide assurances to me and, more important, the public with regard to the management of capital expenditure. Bodies were asked to provide budgetary information on capital projects costing more than €500,000 since 2020.
In addition, bodies were asked to identify if there were other capital projects below this level which should be brought to the Department’s attention for any other reason, such as where there has been significant expenditure on projects which were abandoned or have materially failed to deliver on their objectives. The need to ensure compliance with early warning protocol arrangements between the Department and the State body, as well as with Circular 14/21, relating to arrangements for oversight of digital and ICT-related initiatives in the civil and public service, was also set out in the correspondence.
This exercise, which is designed to provide an additional layer of assurance around spending on capital projects, is in addition to the existing oversight arrangements in place, as well as the annual auditing process undertaken by the Comptroller and Auditor General. It should be noted that the code of practice for the governance of State bodies provides a framework for the application of best practice in corporate governance by State bodies. The board is responsible for ensuring that effective systems of internal control are instituted and implemented in the State body, including financial, operational and compliance control and risk management. I will read the rest of my written reply in a while.
There is a bit of a smoke and mirrors effort happening here; a bit of a damage limitation stunt. I appreciate what the Minister has inherited here is a little bit of a mess but the reality is that his Department already knows what is being spent. That is fair to say. What we have seen though, with both of the incidents the Minister cited, is an abject failure in terms of oversight in governance.
I am really intrigued to see how deep he is willing to go in this regard. Will he get into the weeds of writing to a national governing body, such as the FAI, for example, asking it to write to the Kildare and district underage league, KDUL, asking for reports? What does that mechanism look like? That is a really interesting point.
We have seen reports that the Arts Council flagged this issue three years ago, so there were no question marks over the fact that there were concerns about this many years ago, but the Department was not in a position to provide support. When we see a shortfall in reporting mechanisms within the Department, is it not meritable now to look at what is going on in the Department as much as what is going on within the agencies?
I do not disagree with the Deputy. The committee I have established to examine the governance of the Arts Council is being led by Professor Niamh Brennan. It includes Margaret Cullen and John McCarthy. They have all in their own right plenty of experience of examining corporate governance in other areas as well. I do not disagree with the Deputy with regard to the Department's role but I have to find out first of all the level of detail that is required here. I will bring a report to the Government first and I will lay it before the Dáil. It is in my interests and in the Department's interests to get public confidence in the moneys that are voted from here to the Department in order to make sure that the Department and its agencies spend money wisely on behalf of the taxpayer. I have no issue with that. I am not suggesting that the Deputy is suggesting this, but I am not in any way attempting to hide anything here. The most important thing is that Niamh Brennan's committee be asked to do a body of work by me and get it done as quickly as possible. Separately, I will deal with the National Gallery and any other issues there as well, and I will lay all of them before the Houses of the Oireachtas. There is no issue in that regard.
We all know, having worked in different sectors, that extensive reporting mechanisms are in place already. If we draw down public funds, we have to report at every step of that process. We know that, for example, as regards the IT system, there are what we call decision gates at various stages of expenditure, whereby organisations have to report that back. As for my concern about the committee to which the Minister referred, I would love to see the terms of reference for the committee. Are we going to look only at the responsibility of the Arts Council in this example or are we going to forensically examine, if it was identified that there were issues here but that the Department in and of itself was not in a position to support the organisation, where else that is happening? That is a crucial bit.
As regards that root-and-branch review, will the Minister put on the record of the House today that the arts sector will not suffer financially as a result of what has happened in recent months? That is really important. There was concern out there that the very valuable work undertaken by artists throughout this country will suffer because of this. Will the Minister put on record that that will not happen?
To take the last point first, it is not my intention that anybody who is legitimately doing very good work on behalf of the arts community across the country should suffer. That is not my concern here at all. My concern is the same as the Deputy's concern, that is, that if there is voted expenditure from the Oireachtas to Government Departments, it must be for the purpose that it is for. I will also say - I said this in the course of an interview - that the Minister for Health does not know, nor should she know, nor could she know, how many thermometers are in University Hospital Waterford and how much they cost. We have civil and public servants within the Department and within different agencies to make sure that the moneys that are spent on our behalf as Members of Dáil Éireann are spent appropriately. The first thing I have to find out here is who knew what when, to bring that information before the Dáil and to make the necessary changes in terms of governance and oversight from within my own Department, but as well as that, within the Department's relationship with the bodies concerned. We will do that, and if people have any suggestions, I am all ears and I will not rule anything out.
3. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media to give an update on and a timeline for the creation of football academies with the FAI and the League of Ireland, as contained in the programme for Government; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10149/25]
I ask the Minister to give an update on and a timeline for the creation of football academies with the FAI and the League of Ireland, as contained in the programme for Government, and to make a statement on the matter.
I thank Deputy Byrne and congratulate her on her election and her spokespersonship.
In response to the question, the programme for Government, as the Deputy knows, includes a commitment to explore new mechanisms for the creation of football academies with the FAI and the League of Ireland. My Department has provided additional funding to the FAI to enable it to produce a report on developing football academies. This will include a baseline audit of existing academy structures and needs, and that will then inform the development of an academy development plan. This funding will also enable the FAI to appoint an academies administrator, to support the development of new academy programmes and to track their impact. The funding will be channelled through Sport Ireland. I very much look forward to receiving the report from Sport Ireland. It will be a key input to considering the next steps to be taken while noting that decisions in this regard are primarily a matter for the FAI as an independent sports body.
Considerable additional financial support has been provided by the State for the development of football in Ireland, particularly through the 2020-23 memorandum of understanding between the Government and the FAI. That MOU provided for funding of €5.8 million per annum to the FAI during that four-year period up to 2023 for football development. A new MOU was signed last December, which increased State funding to the FAI to €6 million per annum for the period 2024-27.
In terms of State support for the development of facilities, more than €100 million was allocated to Irish football in the second half of last year. That consisted of €54.5 million in November from the large-scale sport infrastructure fund to football stadium projects at Finn Harps, Dalymount Park, Sligo Rovers and Wexford FC. Also, we saw €50.5 million allocated from the community sports and equipment fund to support the development of grassroots club football facilities nationwide.
The Government is committed to supporting the development of Ireland's sporting ecosystem, and the support that continues to be provided for football is a key example of that commitment.
Despite football being the biggest sport in Ireland, I feel it has been overlooked for too long in this country, in particular our footballing academies. The future of Irish football relies on investment, resources and infrastructure to support, build and evolve youth football. Historically, resources have not been there to give players the contact hours with coaches that are necessary. Irish clubs as a whole are fighting to survive and they need support from all relevant stakeholders, including the Government. Statistics outline the difference in training hours for a kid at an Irish club compared with its counterpart category 3 club in the UK. They fall way short. As the ages rise from under-14s to under-17s, so too do the disparity and the imbalance. Alarmingly, staffing levels for our academies are among the lowest in Europe, with ten full-time staff across 24 academies here, Poland boasting 376 staff across 16 clubs and Portugal with 315 over seven academies. Croatia, often hailed in comparison to Ireland due to its having a similar population, has 190 full-time academy staff across ten clubs.
We have seen great momentum and great attendances in recent times in the League of Ireland. There was a great example recently in the Aviva Stadium, with 33,000 people attending. I want to work with the FAI and all in grassroots football to build on that momentum in order to make sure that right across the country the support and development opportunities are there for young children to get involved in this sport, to excel and to develop their participation. At the moment, the Government, through the memorandum of understanding with the FAI, has significant support in place. Significantly increased support started in 2019, following on from the financial collapse of the FAI at that time, which led to a significant increase in the allocation to the FAI, targeted primarily towards coaching and development at grassroots level, particularly with young people. I think there is real potential in developing an academy structure as part of that ecosystem. I want to make sure that any investment we put into that is directed in a way that makes a real impact and delivers real results. I have outlined how we are engaging with the FAI, how we have already provided financial support to do an audit and to put in place an academy administrator and then how we step it out from there.
The FAI has worked tremendously hard in recent years to enhance its reputation as a trusted and respected brand. It has an ambitious facilities development and investment strategy that commits to raising standards within grassroots and recreational football. With nearly 1,200 grassroots clubs and more than 220,000 registered players over 75 leagues, the numbers speak for themselves. Participation and the potential are ever growing. I welcome the Minister of State's contribution today, but kicking the ball down the field and delaying State funding for League of Ireland academies, as was referred to in an interview with the Minister, Deputy O'Donovan, last week, is not an option. As a nation, we are falling short on all fronts when it comes to recognising the potential League of Ireland clubs and grassroots football can bring. The fate of our senior international teams, both male and female, relies on our delivering a fitting future for every boy and girl who enters their own field of dreams. I implore the Minister and the Minister of State to make their mark, be the voice for youth football in Ireland and continue to support the FAI in its endeavours to harness the academies to develop a full-time football industry. I look forward to working with them both in the future to that end.
I see real potential here as to how we can develop an academy system. Obviously, we have to make sure we develop it in a way that is sustainable and makes the biggest impact. The plans are not there yet as to how exactly that would work. I want to see how they would work. We have given some funding to the FAI to do an audit and to put an administrator in place, to see how we can step that out. Then, as to how we follow through from a Government point of view, I want to see real results in that regard and liaise closely with the FAI on the exact plans as to how this might be stepped out.
The Government has massively committed to grassroots sports and to seeing people being able to participate at this level, as well as to excel and develop their full potential. I refer as well to the undoubted potential we have as a soccer nation to improve even further and to see the pipeline coming through, right up to the League of Ireland level and internationally from there on. This is something I want to work on with everyone in soccer and with the FAI to ensure we develop this potential.
Go raibh maith agat.
I am committed to developing an academy structure, but we must be very clear about how we step it out, ensuring it is impactful and there is a clear plan and direction of travel in place for that journey.
4. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media the number of artists who have benefited from the basic income scheme for artists to date; the status of research into the benefits of the scheme; and if extending this scheme is a priority for him in budget 2026. [10543/25]
The basic income for the arts scheme is a proud legacy of the Green Party's time in Government. It is benefiting more than 2,000 artists with a monthly payment. I believe this scheme should be maintained and, indeed, enhanced. Can the Minister give us an indication of the research that has been done on its impact at the same time as the pilot is operating? Can he also give us an indication as to whether keeping the scheme or growing it is one of his budgetary priorities?
The programme for Government commits to assessing the basic income for artists pilot research scheme to maximise its impact. The basic income for the arts pilot research scheme will conclude in August this year and the data from the pilot will be fed into the Government's consideration of the next steps. Recipients have been receiving payments and responding to surveys under the scheme since August 2022. Some 2,000 artists and creative arts workers have benefited from the payment of €325 a week since August 2022. There were over 8,000 eligible applicants for the scheme and the 2,000 recipients were chosen through an anonymised random selection process. In budget 2025, the Government made an allocation of €35 million for the basic income for the arts scheme in 2025. It is important to note that the pilot is a research programme and that no decision has been taken as to its continuation. The research evaluating the impact of the pilot scheme is ongoing and it is a priority for me to ensure the research is completed to assess and maximise the impact of the scheme ahead of budget 2026.
While the research phase of the pilot scheme is still ongoing, it is clear from the evidence collected to date under the scheme that it is having a positive impact on the participants. The latest data is available through published reports on the basic income for the arts website on gov.ie. This data shows that the scheme payment is having a consistent positive impact across almost all indicators affecting practice development, sectoral retention, well-being and deprivation. Artists in receipt of the support are typically able to devote more time to their art, experience a boost to their well-being through greater life satisfaction and reduced anxiety, and are protected from the precarious nature of incomes in the sector to a greater degree than those not receiving the support. I will shortly publish a qualitative research paper on the scheme and work is starting to undertake a cost benefit analysis for a more complete assessment of the impacts of the scheme. A Government decision will be required on a successor scheme to the pilot and the future of the scheme will be decided when the final results of the research are available. These will provide the Government with the evidence base upon which to base future policy decisions about the basic income for the arts.
I am glad to hear the Minister refer to the impact assessment his Department conducted after year one of the scheme. I was really impressed by some of its findings, including artists being able to spend up to eight hours a week more on their practice and having the ability to invest up to €550 monthly into their practices for materials, workspaces and the like. There was a 9% increase in the number of artists able to sustain themselves solely in their practices because of the support the basic income scheme provided. The Minister also touched on a slightly intangible aspect, namely, the well-being impacts for artists. We know many types of artistic practice can be tenuous, precarious and lonely, and, therefore, the well-being impacts are something we can welcome too. There is a really strong campaign in this regard. The National Campaign for the Arts, Performing Arts Forum, First Music Contact and Irish Street Arts, Circus and Spectacle Network groups are all campaigning and looking for this scheme to be continued. I would love to get the Minister's sense at this stage in the year in the context of his own priorities of what his thinking is on this scheme.
As the Deputy will appreciate, I have been rather busy since I went into the Department. The total cost of this scheme is €105 million. It was committed by the previous Government of which the Deputy was a member. Undoubtedly, this scheme has certainly had major benefits for the individual artists concerned. Now, we have an opportunity to do not only qualitative but also quantitative research regarding the output from the scheme. From the Deputy's time as the Minister for children, he will know that any decisions taken this far out from a budget cannot be undertaken without the context and input of the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform. Once I have the research concluded, however, and have a qualitative and quantitative piece of work I can bring to the Government on the value accrued to the State from that €105 million allocated from the previous Government, I think that will probably colour the decision going forward. I am looking forward to seeing that research concluded soon.
The qualitative research is extremely valuable when we are investing significant amounts of taxpayers' money. The research process was built into this pilot from day one to ensure we were assessing the scheme's actual outcomes. We look forward to seeing the qualitative paper the Minister spoke about earlier. There are options here. The Minister could look to extend the scheme for the existing 2,000 participants, he could look to bring in a new 2,000 participants into the scheme or he could look to grow the scheme in its entirety. A decision will have to be made in terms of the next budgetary process. The Minister's predecessor, former Deputy Catherine Martin, secured funding for the scheme up to the end of this year, I think. From the start of 2026, though, a clear decision will have to be taken. I think the evidence to date points to the benefits of the scheme and suggests we should be looking to grow it. I look forward to engaging further with the Minister when additional information is provided.
I do not disagree with the Deputy, except on his last point. There is no point in having research carried out and then making the decision ahead of it. I have to bring this matter to the Government and, as a former Minister for children, the Deputy will know what this involves. I am not going to pre-empt the outcome of the research, which is looking at the scheme under a variety of headings, including practice development, well-being, deprivation, sectoral retention and others. The benefits of the scheme have been well enunciated. The Deputy is right in saying there are a limited number of people in it and several different options that could possibly be looked at. People outside the scheme now might ask if it is their turn or is it somebody else's turn. All these aspects will have to be looked at in the round. Once I have the research before me and I can bring a memorandum to the Government, which I hope to do soon, there will be clarity regarding the scheme's future.
5. D'fhiafraigh Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh den Aire Turasóireachta, Cultúir, Ealaíon, Gaeltachta, Spóirt agus Meán cén réiteach sealadach atá beartaithe aige, fad is atá réiteach fadtéarmach á lorg, chun a chinntiú nach mbeidh eagraíochtaí agus grúpaí pobail Gaeilge thíos leis toisc ciorruithe de €800,000 orthu ó Fhoras na Gaeilge; agus an ndéanfaidh sé ráiteas ina thaobh. [10182/25]
Is ceist í seo mar gheall ar mhaoiniú Fhoras na Gaeilge agus an gá go ndíreofaí isteach le teacht timpeall ar an bhfadhb bhunúsach go bhfuil ciorraithe anois de €800,000 ar an mbuiséad a bheas ag na sé cheanneagraíocht Gaeilge de thairbhe chinneadh Fhoras na Gaeilge.
Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta. Mar is eol dó, tá cúraimí na Gaeltachta agus na Gaeilge ag aistriú chuig an Aire, an Teachta Calleary, go luath. Is é an tAire, an Teachta Calleary, a bheidh freagrach as polasaí a fhorbairt faoi na ceisteanna seo. Tá mé ag súil go mbeidh an obair go léir críochnaithe go luath chun na feidhmeanna a aistriú go foirmiúil ó mo Roinn chuig an Roinn nua, is í sin, an Roinn pobail, gnóthaí tuaithe agus Gaeltachta. Is í an Chomhairle Aireachta Thuaidh-Theas, CATT, a cheadaíonn buiséid do na hinstitiúidí Thuaidh-Theas, lena n-áirítear an Foras Teanga Thuaidh-Theas. Cuireann mo Roinn 75% den bhuiséad ar fáil d'Fhoras na Gaeilge agus tagann an chuid eile ón Roinn Pobal ó Thuaidh.
Tá méadú curtha ar fáil ag Rialtas na hÉireann i mbuiséad 2025 le cur i dtreo an Fhorais Teanga Thuaidh-Theas. Cuirtear tús le bliain bhuiséid an Fheidhmeannais ó Thuaidh i mí Aibreáin, áfach, agus dá réir sin, níl buiséid na bliana seo deimhnithe go fóill ag an Roinn Pobal ó Thuaidh. Nuair a bheidh buiséad 2025 deimhnithe agus aontaithe ag na Ranna urraíochta, ó Thuaidh agus ó Dheas, cuirfear é faoi bhráid an chéad chruinniú eile de chuid an CATT.
Rinne Foras na Gaeilge cinneadh ag tús na bliana seo ciorraithe a chur i bhfeidhm ar roinnt dá chuid scéimeanna bunaithe ar an mbuiséad a bhí aige anuraidh. Tá na Ranna urraíochta ó Thuaidh agus ó Dheas ag obair go dlúth le chéile chun na roghanna go léir a scrúdú ar mhaithe le teacht ar réiteach sa ghearrthéarma agus san fhadtéarma araon ar na ceisteanna faoin mhaoiniú.
Idir an dá linn, tá sé tábhachtach a thabhairt faoi deara go gcuireann an Rialtas maoiniú suntasach breise ar fáil d'Fhoras na Gaeilge agus dá sé cheanneagraíocht maidir le gníomhaíochtaí eile Gaeilge. Le dhá bhliain anuas amháin, tá dúbailt tagtha ar an sciar den mhaoiniú sin a chuireann an Rialtas ar fáil go díreach do cheanneagraíochtaí Fhoras na Gaeilge, ó €1.8 milliún in 2023 go dtí €3.6 milliún i mbliana.
Cloisim go ndeir an tAire nach bhfuil an buiséad réitithe go fóill ach tá a fhios ag gach uile dhuine go bhfuil an buiséad réitithe mar tá sé soiléir nach bhfuil airgead breise ag teacht ón bhFeidhmeannas toisc cinntí an DUP. Dá réir, ní bheidh aon fhás ar bhuiséad Fhoras na Gaeilge. Caithfimid teacht timpeall ar fhadhb atá cuíosach bunúsach le tamall de bhlianta anuas áit atá an Stát ag rá go hoscailte go bhfuil sé sásta cur leis an airgead agus go bhfuil an fhadhb ó Thuaidh. Is fadhb pholaitiúil í ach is fadhb í sa chás seo atá ag cur as do na sé cheanneagrais go bhfuil €800,000 á tharraingt siar ón obair atá ar bun acu. Na dreamanna a bheidh thíos leis seo ná dreamanna atá thíos cheana féin toisc nach raibh aon ardú sa bhuiséad acu le blianta agus an fhadhb bunúsach seo ann. Caithfimid teacht timpeall air seo ar bhealach. Tabharfaidh mé roinnt samplaí don Aire nuair a thagaim ar ais.
Tá a fhios ag an Teachta an méid oibre a rinne mé nuair a bhí mé mar Aire Stáit ag plé leis an ábhar sin. Tá sé an-deacair. Níl aon amhras orainn faoin bpointe sin. Tá sé an-tábhachtach freisin d’Fhoras na Gaeilge go réiteofar an fhadhb seo chomh luath agus is féidir. B’fhéidir go mbeadh seans ag an Teachta buaileadh leis an Aire nua, an Teachta Calleary, agus an t-ábhar sin a phlé. B’fhéidir go mbunófar na coistí go luath agus go mbeidh an Teachta Ó Snodaigh ina chathaoirleach ar an gcoiste Gaelainne agus Gaeltachta arís. Tá an t-ábhar seo an-tábhachtach, ní hamháin don dream atá ag lorg tacaíochta ó Fhoras na Gaeilge ach d’aon duine le suim i gcúrsaí Gaeltachta agus Gaelainne. Tá sé an-tábhachtach domsa freisin an t-ábhar seo a réiteach go luath.
Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire as sin. Tuigim go bhfuil, mar a dúirt sé, na feidhmeanna á n-aistriú go dtí an Aire, an Teachta Calleary, ach is an Aire, an Teachta O'Donovan, atá os mo chomhair inniu agus tá sé anseo thar ceann an chórais mar sin. Is teachtaireacht é seo don chóras. Caithfimid uilig teacht ar bhealach timpeall air. Ní rud polaitiúil atá i gceist go bhfuil mé ag spochadh as an Aire, an Teachta O’Donovan, nó as an gcóras. Tá mise sásta cuidiú in aon bhealach gur féidir liom ach caithfimid smaoineamh ar bhealaí cliste más gá le teacht timpeall ar an bhfadhb ionas nach bhfuil na heagrais thíos €800,000 nach bhfuil ar fáil dóibh. Mar shampla, tá an scéim tacaíochta gnó agus beidh an chéad glaoch eile ann do scéim na bhféilte. Beidh an scéim seo thíos €140,000. Tá a fhios agam go raibh an-spéis ag an Teachta O’Donovan i gcur chun cinn na Gaeilge i measc an phobail. Tá €140,000 bainte as scéim dírithe ar fhéilte. Is féidir linn, is féidir leis an Aire agus is féidir leis an Roinn tograí aonuaire a mhaoiniú agus b’fhéidir gur sin an bealach timpeall air seo láithreach bonn chun cuidiú leis na féilte seo sa bhealach sin.
Cinnte. Tá a fhios ag an Teachta go bhfuil an fhoireann Gaeltachta agus Gaelainne imithe ó mo Roinn agus mar sin is é an tAire, an Teachta Calleary, atá ag plé agus a bheidh freagrach as na polasaithe a bhaineann le cúrsaí Gaeltachta agus Gaelainne. Ach tuigim go bhfuil mé os comhair an Dála inniu agus beidh mé in ann an t-ábhar sin a phlé leis an Aire chomh luath agus is féidir. Níl aon amhras orm ach go bhfuil sé sin an-tábhachtach do na daoine ar fad sa tír seo a bhfuil suim acu i gcúrsaí Gaelainne agus Gaeltachta. Tá sé an-tábhachtach an t-ábhar sin a réiteach go luath.
