Mr. Feargal Ó Coigligh:

I will make a few general comments. We all admit it has been a very difficult period and both national organisations and local groups have had insufficient resources. That is a difficult space. The report refers to issues of participation. We will never have X amount of money per person per county; it does not work like that. For example, in the south east, Wexford might skew it because a significant amount of money goes to the Wexford Opera Festival.

The issue of local government is very important and has been one of the most exciting developments in arts policy in the past 20 or 30 years through the role of the arts officer and the local groups that have been supported by the Arts Council and where the facilities have been supported by the Department. We recognise that those facilities need to be supported and the Minister has put in place a new scheme starting next year to help reinvest in those centres. That is very important. We cannot necessarily say that local authority members have to prioritise in terms of how funding operates and their policies in funding. We know that some of the difference in provision is not necessarily an issue regarding Arts Council provision but rather that it relates to the emphasis individual local authorities place on the provision of arts. That may be acceptable because local democracy and prioritisation is part of the decision-making process. There is a complex issue of how national support and local priority fit together.