Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 3 Jul 1996

Vol. 468 No. 1

Written Answers. - Craft Council of Ireland.

Mary O'Rourke

Ceist:

196 Mrs. O'Rourke asked the Minister for Enterprise and Employment the amount of finance given each year from his Department to the Craft Council of Ireland; the names of the current members of the council; the names of the current chief executive and the previous chief executive; if he has satisfied himself that the craft council is fulfilling its responsibilities in the optimum way; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14676/96]

Minister for Enterprise and Employment (Mr. R. Bruton)

The Crafts Council of Ireland was allocated £400,000 under my Department's Vote for this year. This is the same as its allocation for each of the two previous years. The funding is drawn down via the Forbairt subhead.

The council is comprised of 15 persons, ten of whom are elected by the craft sector and five of whom are nominated by me. The current elected members are as follows: Ms Suzanne May, Mr. Michael McCrory, Ms Breda Haugh, Mr. David Comerford, Mr. Knut Klimmek, Mr. Neil Read, Ms Kaethe Burt-O'Dea, Mr. David Shaw-Smith, Ms Mary Jackson, Ms Bernadette Madden.

The current nominated members are: Mr. Cyril Forbes (Chairman), Ms Hilary Pratt, Mr. Ed Kevin, Mr. David Hargaden, Mr. Jonathan Ryan.

The council's current chief executive is Mr. Leslie Reed. The previous incumbent was Ms Carmel Buttimer.

Last year I requested a comprehensive study of the activities of the Crafts Council. The Civil Service consultant who carried out the study made a number of wide-ranging recommendations in relation to the future operations of the council. Many of these recommendations have already been implemented or are in the process of implementation.

One of the main recommendations was that Forbairt, from whose subhead the council receives its Exchequer allocation, should assume direct responsibility for the supervision-performance of the council, subject to overall control by my Department. Forbairt, which has a representative on the council's board, reports to my Department on developments within the council. On the basis of reports received to-date, and on the basis of my own direct discussions with the chairman of the council, I am satisfied with the current operations of the council and that the council itself is addressing how it can best meet the needs of the craft sector through its own activities and in association with other development agencies.