Mr. Colm Croffy:

Indeed I am. IPB Insurance has advised city and county managers that for some level of celebratory community event, such as a Hallowe'en celebration, a community parade, a civic engagement or a heritage re-enactment in a town square, a public indemnity of between €6.3 million and €10.5 million is required. For every extra €1 million in indemnity that a festival committee has to come up with, the insurance premium increases by approximately €1,500. When AOIFE was founded in 1993, the two midwives to our association were the Irish Music Rights Organisation, which was looking for ridiculous copyright charges, and the insurance industry of Ireland. There was just one provider in the system at the time. In the early 1990s, some 28% of every £1 being raised by not-for-profit festival committees was being spent on insurance.