Mr. Adrian Moynes:

Go raibh maith agat a Chathaoirligh. I dtús báire caithfimid ár mbuíochas a chur in iúl don choiste as an deis thábhachtach seo labhairt libh inniu agus tá súil agam go mbeidh an t-eolas a roinnfear anseo inniu ina chuidiú agaibh. I will speak very briefly about the nature of the Tyrone Guthrie Centre, following which my colleague, Mr. Robert McDonald, will speak about its day-to-day operations.

The Tyrone Guthrie centre is unique in that it is a gift to the whole of Ireland, North and South, under the terms of a will. In effect, those of us who are privileged to be on the board and be working there are trustees of a gift to the nation. The board consists of nine members, four from Northern Ireland and five from this State. Artists come from all over Ireland. The centre has three streams of income, namely, the two arts councils in Ireland and revenue from the artists who stay at the centre. Those artists come from Ireland, North and South, but also from throughout the European Union and further afield. This week, we have some Italians and Americans in residence at centre. The centre is an artists' retreat and a place where creative work is done. Put simply what we do for the artists who choose to stay with is we put a roof over their heads and we put the dinner on the table in the evening. This is a tremendous asset to anybody trying to finish a novel, write a short story, compose a work of music or finish a painting. They do not have to think about the daily bread for the duration of their stay.

I will hand over to my colleague, Mr. Robert McDonald, at this point.