Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 24 February 2022
27. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media if all arts workers, not only performers and artists but including crew and technicians, will be eligible for the basic income pilot scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10513/22]
View answer31. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media the reason she is limiting the basic income pilot scheme to 2,000 applicants; if she will reconsider this number given that it represents a very small cohort of those working in the arts and culture; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10514/22]
View answer37. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media the status of the basic income guarantee pilot scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10424/22]
View answer41. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media further to Parliamentary Question No. 99 of 20 January 2022, the expected timeline for the opening of the basic income pilot scheme for artists; the number of submissions received in the public consultation; the status of the review of the public consultation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10316/22]
View answer57. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media the status of establishing the eligibility criteria for the basic income pilot scheme for workers in the arts; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10512/22]
View answer60. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media the status of progress relating to the basic income for artists pilot scheme following the stakeholder forum; if she has received the report of the forum’s findings; and if there is a new timeline for delivery of the scheme given that the target of opening the scheme for applications in early quarter 1 of 2022 has now been missed. [10452/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 27, 31, 37, 41, 57 and 60 together.
The Basic Income for the Arts Pilot scheme will run over a three year period and the intention is to research the impact a basic income would have on artists' and creatives' work patterns by providing the opportunity to focus on their practice, and to minimise the loss of skills from the arts as a result of the pandemic.
Stakeholder engagement has been core to the policy development process and this included a stakeholder forum on 15 December 2021, where over 150 participants from 50 artists and arts workers resource and representative bodies came together to discuss the proposal. Following that forum I held a public consultation throughout the month of January.
The purpose of the consultation was to ensure that the general public, artists, and those working in the arts and culture sector have the opportunity to contribute to policy development for the pilot scheme and to offer suggestions from their experiences as artists, arts workers, and members of resource organisations on key issues such as the schemes objectives, eligibility criteria, supporting emerging artists and participant responsibilities.
The public consultation closed three weeks ago and my Department received a significant number of submissions, reflecting the high level of interest in this new policy intervention. Officials in my Department are currently reviewing the submissions and a report on the consultation is currently being prepared which will be published shortly.
I am at present giving consideration to the feedback of the sector received through the consultation as I finalise the eligibility criteria for the pilot scheme. Such a significant policy intervention takes time to operationalise and final details of the selection process, number of participants, eligibility criteria, rate of payment etc. are being reviewed following the consultation. However, the following broad parameters have been agreed:
- Participation in the scheme will not be based on a means test.
- It will be a non-competitive process, therefore once a person satisfies the eligibility criteria they will be included in a randomised selection process.
- A number of unsuccessful applicants will be invited to participate in a control group to facilitate a comprehensive ex post appraisal of the pilot in due course.
I have always stated that my ambition is to open the scheme for applications in the first quarter of 2022 and that remains the case. My Department is currently finalising the scheme taking on board the feedback from the consultation and I expect to make an announcement in the coming weeks.
As this is a pilot scheme with the intention of researching what the impact of a basic income style support would have on the arts sector, it would not be appropriate to extend it to everyone in the sector at pilot stage. The three year research programme will collect data to provide the evidence base regarding impact. A decision based on the outcome of the research would then need to be taken by Government as to if the scheme were to become a permanent intervention and if it would be extended to all eligible artists and creative arts workers.
The Basic Income for the Arts pilot is a key priority of mine. I believe the pilot scheme will bring new life and support to the Arts and Cultural Sector and I hope it will provide an important legacy for our artists and creatives.
