Ms Maureen Kennelly:

I assert the primacy of the longer funding cycle for arts centres. It is something we are actively exploring right now. In terms of the local authority and its commitment, Ms Walsh was right in what she said. We had a recent good example of that with the Belltable in Limerick to which Limerick City Council has pledged support over a five-year period, which is terrific. That is how we will ensure the next generation of artists are funded when arts centres and other organisations have that certainty of funding.

Also, the fact that local authorities retained their commitment to the arts last year and this year has been critical to the ongoing success of the arts and to the fact that not a single arts centre closed its doors. No centre collapsed. That is important. Ongoing local authority support was very much part of the arts and culture recovery task force, which the Department set up. We very much hope that will continue. That underlines the partnership between ourselves in the Arts Council and local authorities and how they can work to the best ends.