Vol. 566 No. 3
292 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism the progress which has been made regarding an application by Monaghan VEC for grant aid to provide a new theatre in Monaghan town; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12932/03]
An application was submitted by the Garage Theatre in Monaghan for funding from my Department's ACCESS scheme to build a new theatre and arts centre. This application was not recommended by the independent assessment committee established to evaluate all applications. Total funds allocated to the ACCESS scheme amount to €45.71 million, while applications were received for grant aid totalling €284.42 million. Difficult decisions therefore had to be made with many worthwhile projects having to be refused. All available funds have been committed.
