Mr. Martin Collins:

From a Traveller organisation perspective, we are in the process of developing the new national Traveller and Roma inclusion strategy. The previous strategy has come to an end so we are working with the Minister, Deputy O’Gorman, and his Department to develop the next one. We will push for actions in that strategy as we did with the last one for 2017-21 around culture, identity and inclusion of Travellers in the arts and so on. As part of that we will recommend that funding would be put aside or ring-fenced to support Travellers’ capacity positively to embed ourselves further in the arts and cultural sector of the country. I do not think there would be any resistance to that. Our community has not been invested in in the area of culture and the arts and the validation of our identity and our contribution to the arts through the years.

I am struck by a profound observation Dr. Bairbre Ní Fhloinn from the Centre for Irish Folklore in UCD made in 2006. She said if any village or town in Ireland that had a population of 30,000 people - that is what we had at the time; it is now around 60,000 - produced as many artists, singers, poets and fantastic musicians such as the Fureys, the Keenans and Johnny Doran it would be deemed by the UN to be a heritage town. It would be given that status. That is what our community has done. It is a small community and we have produced so many artists of a very high calibre yet we have not had the acknowledgement, recognition or the validation it deserves. That is a problem that needs to be addressed.