Ms Sheila Pratschke:

I will deal briefly the Aosdána matter. Joining Aosdána is, first and foremost, an honour for an artist, but we understand the Cnuas grant is a very important element of it for artists. The award of the Cnuas grant is one of the very best ways we can support artists in their middle and later years. It has never been under question or threat and the council is completely committed to it. We are in ongoing discussions with Aosdána about a certain amount of reform of the system whereby people would be elected or invited to join, etc. However, the Cnuas grant is sacrosanct.