Ms Susan Kirby:

It is important that Screen Producers Ireland go on the record, as we did previously as part of the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC, process that I mentioned. There is an employment relationship between the DAC and the employee. The nature of that employment is defined by the contract. As Ms O'Sullivan stated, this is a project-based industry and, in large part, the contract is a fixed-term contract. For various reasons, this is the global norm, including in Ireland. It is also a career choice. Speaking as someone who has worked in the creative industries for more than 25 years, and as I imagine some of those present will want to testify, one aspires to work on numerous creative projects. The concept that one producer company will move between doing a large-scale creative period piece to a small indigenous project to another project is infeasible. The committee has heard testimony that there would be an aspiration towards permanent employment.