Ms Katherine Licken:

I will answer the question that was asked about Creative Ireland. The principal conduit for the funding of artists is the Arts Council, which has a significant budget to that end. As we have said, the council is independent in its funding decisions. I think everyone here values that independence. Creative Ireland is about raising the profile of the arts sector and embedding creativity across all areas of government. That is why we are working with the Departments of Education and Skills and Children and Youth Affairs, as well as with the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment on the audiovisual front. There are five pillars to the programme, which is fundamentally about embedding creativity across government and raising the profile of the arts. All of this ultimately benefits artists. Creative Ireland is in its early stages. We have a long way to go. Developments under Creative Ireland will be announced in the coming weeks.

I would like to echo what Ms McBride has said about the workshops. The wider workshops are about the entire community. We will see what comes out of our meeting with the theatre leaders and our engagement with the Irish Theatre Institute. We will assess whether any of the lessons that have been learned could be applied to the remainder of this sector.