Ms D?sir?e Finnegan:

That is true. We have heard those calls for a number of years now. Mr. Lee and the skills team have spent a long time investing in it and trying to build it out as a resource. We feel that not only will it represent crew but it will also represent facilities and services. It will be a full directory for the industry. To my knowledge, the industry has never before had something this comprehensive. What we like about it is that we see it as a tool for the industry itself. We want to ensure that the industry is as open and inclusive as possible, and that it gives fair opportunities for employment to everyone. As a State agency, we play no role in the employment relationship but we felt this would be a valuable tool to enable any individual to self-register. If a local or international production company is looking for crew, this resource would be available to them and allow them to connect with people. We hope the database will launch in the next few weeks. It is a pilot programme.