Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 31 May 2018
259. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the status of the investment of €8.5 million in Creative Ireland as outlined in budget 2018; the amount of the allocation that has been spent; the way in which the funds have been spent; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24215/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraA budget of €6m was provided as part of Budget 2018 to further the implement the Creative Ireland Programme. This will ensure that the Department can build on the work accomplished in 2017, continue to drive the implementation of the Programme at local level and fund specific actions and priorities which further the wider aims of the Programme.
€1.15m of the above budget has been allocated to the implementation of Creative Youth: A plan to enable the creative potential of every child and young person in the country, launched in December 2017. This is a wide-ranging and ambitious plan that puts culture and creativity at the heart of education. The Department of Education is also providing over €1m for this Plan in 2018.
In addition to this commitment to implementing Creative Youth, the allocation from my Department to each local authority will be doubled to €2m for 2018 to enable them commence the implementation of their long-term Culture and Creative Strategies due to be launched very shortly. An additional €1m has been provided by the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government.
€0.8m has been allocated to Cruinniú na nÓg which will take place on the 23 June 2018 and which aims to get as many young people involved in creative activities as possible with an emphasis on making, doing, seeing and experiencing. Every local authority has been allocated €10,000 to fund a programme of local activities while there will be a special programme of activities across Dublin City.
A sum of €0.7m has been allocated to the new Creative Ireland Programme Scheme launched in May 2018. This will significantly add value and/or scale to the implementation of the programme and will help inform policy and/or cross-sectoral development in the area of culture, creativity and wellbeing. The scheme focuses on three areas, individual and collective wellbeing, innovation and connecting communities. Further information on the scheme can be found on https://creative.ireland.ie.
A full breakdown of how the budget has been allocated is outlined in the table below.
|
Area of Expenditure |
Amount €m |
Deliverables |
|
Local Authority Partnership (Pillar 2) |
€2.8 |
Development and publication of Local Authority Cultural Strategies and 2018 Activity Plans and roll out of Cruinniú na nÓg across the country on the 23 June 2018 |
|
Creative Youth (Pillar 1) |
€1.15 |
Implementation of actions contained within Creative Youth Plan |
|
Creative Ireland Programme Scheme |
€0.7 |
Funding pilot projects and new proposals under this open funding scheme |
|
Citizen Engagement/Web Development/Digital Content |
€0.5 |
Multimedia communications and awareness programme across various media platforms aligned to deliverables |
|
Administrative/Operational Costs |
€0.5 |
Costs associated with operating Project Office including, for example, design, printing, launches, workshops as well as the salaries of contract staff. |
|
Research Programme |
€0.15 |
Pilot Creative Ireland Research Programme looking at how the arts, culture and creativity contribute to individual, community and national wellbeing |
|
Contingency Fund |
€0.2 |
Contingency funds to support unforeseen initiatives or costs that may arise |
|
Total |
€6m |
The overall allocations to each of the above elements are approximate and may vary as the Creative Ireland Programme evolves throughout 2018. |
While allocations have been made under the Programme in 2018 most expenditure will arise in the second half of the year as costs are claimed. To date, approximately €250k has been expended on a range of initiatives under the Programme. The Deputy will appreciate that expenditure figures at this point are provisional and that fully verified and audited expenditure figures will be ultimately be published in the Department's Appropriation Account.
