Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 May 2022
187. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media if there are plans to extend the opening hours of the national cultural institutions under the remit of her Department during the summer months. [26146/22]
View answerI brought the Report of the Night-Time Economy Taskforce to Government in September 2021 and published it thereafter. The Report contains 36 practical recommendations in the area of regulation, licensing, planning, transport, safety and increasing the diversity of activities as part of the night-time offering.
The Night-Time Economy Taskforce examined a broad range of issues associated with the Night-time Economy with the aim of increasing the diversity of events, increasing cultural opportunities for families and other age-groups into the evening and also to look at new ways of encouraging innovation and creativity in the Night-Time Economy. The National Cultural Institutions (NCIs) are key partners in this work.
While opening hours at NCIs are a matter for the Institutions themselves, I am pleased to note that Department officials have had positive engagement from the NCIs on the development of evening and later night activity in the context of the Night-Time Economy Taskforce recommendation. In this context, I understand that a number of the NCIs are planning a series of later openings this Summer and in some cases beyond the Summer. These plans are currently being developed and details will be announced shortly.
