Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 9 April 2019
658. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the funding available for community grants from the Heritage Council in 2017, 2018 and 2019; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16200/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Heritage Council, which is funded by my Department, is independent in the performance of its functions. It is primarily a matter for the Heritage Council itself to decide how its funding is allocated across the range of research, education and conservation programmes it supports, including its Community Grants Scheme and funding for local heritage plans.
I was pleased to announce increased funding of €6.588 million for the Council 2019, compared to €6.377 million in 2018.
The voted funding allocation to the Heritage Council each year is published in the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform’s Revised Estimates Volume. The amounts since 2015 are as follows:
|
Year |
Total (€m) |
|
Year |
Total (€m) |
|
2015 |
4,743 |
|
2016 |
5,243 |
|
2017 |
6,254 |
|
2018 |
6,377 |
|
2019 |
6,588 |
The Heritage Council is at an exciting and defining moment in 2019 with the launch of its Strategic Plan Heritage at the Heart 2018-2022 and the appointment of its new CEO, Virginia Teehan, from 1 February. The new CEO will bring her own talent and vision to everything the Council does, including its grant schemes. The Council recently announced that six historic towns will share in €1 million in capital funding under the Historic Towns Initiative 2019. I understand that final decisions on further funding in 2019 across the Council’s various activities will be made by the new CEO and the Council in the coming weeks and announcements will be made by the Heritage Council in due course.
