Michelle Mulherin (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister, the Minister of State and the others present with them today. The role of the Government is to encourage the arts and create an environment where artists can thrive. If one connects the arts with the 1916 commemorations, which are about our strike for freedom, one can see that the arts are a very important and significant way to give value to that freedom.

On the report mentioned by the Minister, I understand that perhaps there is some resistance to playing a role in combatting social disadvantage among some people operating in the arts and the powers that be. However, it is important that the arts be involved, because they help us to look at things differently. This is important not just for those who are socially disadvantaged, however we define that, but also for those who are not so disadvantaged, as it may affect how they relate to people in that situation. We cannot underestimate the power of the arts in relation to racism, social disadvantage or whatever else. It can turn many prejudices on their head, and we must use it as a tool. The arts should be available to the general population because the value in the work of the artists and those who uphold the arts must be shared. The money is taxpayers' money, so pressure must be applied to measure how those involved in the arts deliver on outreach to people who are not necessarily from an arts background, so that they get the benefit of it, while still supporting our artists and the art organisations.

On the 1916 commemorations, it must be said from the outset, even as we tentatively discuss it here at the Minister's first meeting of this committee, that she will not win on this. While we all enjoy the benefits of the freedom we have now, emanating from that point in our history, we also come from different traditions, ideologies and so on, so we must allow for that. The Minister's approach is very conciliatory, drawing circles of inclusiveness around everybody, because no one group, viewpoint or ideology owns these commemorations. As we move forward, we should reflect. The events in question are now many generations back. We cannot say we have the same perspective in our society as people had then, but we must be respectful. The most important aspect of this is how we celebrate the hard-earned freedom we obtained after being under British rule for so long. What have we done with this freedom? What value has it been to our citizens?

I will ask the Minister a question, which is the nub of what I want to talk about. In my view, people in 1916 were fighting for freedom, so that we could engage in self-determination as individuals, as families and as a nation. Have we now reached a point, especially during the Celtic Tiger, where a belief has been cultivated that the State will step into every gap? The State cannot make up all the shortcomings in a person's life. My concern is that I see not so much socialist ideals expressed through the democratic process, but a retrograde socialism that seeks to impair freedoms that we have won, such as we have seen in these water demonstrations and at Jobstown. I am putting that out there, that in terms of-----