Ms Maureen Kennelly:

Ar dtús, ba mhaith liom a rá go bhfuilimid fíor-bhrónach mar gheall ar an tionscadal seo. I am joined by the deputy director, Martin O'Sullivan, and by our director of business transformation, Poly Anyanwu.

This was not just the development of a grant management system; the project sought to merge five systems into one, to secure and enhance our grant management system and integrate others, particularly our financial system. Our intention was to bring forward an improved service to the arts sector and to improve our reporting and analysis of the impact of our funding.

A lack of senior internal expertise, poor performance by our contractors and the impact of Covid-19, all contributed to the project failure. I reiterate our deep regret at the loss of public funds. We have commenced legal proceedings against two contractors and are in the pre-action stage with two others. We are vigorously pursuing our cases to reduce the loss to the taxpayer.

I have taken action to ensure this cannot happen again. We now have senior ICT expertise in-house. We have identified and implemented improvements to our procurement and project management processes. We are in the process of implementing all recommendations relevant to us from the Department’s examination.

This matter was never hidden by the Arts Council. We reported on the project to our line Department and submitted our accounts on time.

Throughout this project the Arts Council has consistently delivered on its work, through our flagship programmes, partnerships, advisory work and direct grant aid. Last year, for example, we awarded grants to 588 organisations and just under 2,000 individuals through a variety of grant schemes in every county in the country. We also supported 140 festivals, 318 schools and 31 local authorities.

The Arts Council has been supporting the development of the arts in Ireland for 74 years. Art is critical to the health of our country and to the well-being of its citizens.

I understand how the arts sector and audiences feel let down by the Arts Council in this particular project. I realise we need to restore trust and confidence as a matter of urgency. I also know that our work in developing the arts during the lifetime of this project has been successful. In 2019, the Arts Council received 3,000 funding applications and last year we received 8,600. With Government support, we have increased the number, location and types of arts activities we support throughout the country.

This one project failed, but I have faith in the organisation and in my colleagues to continue to support the development of the arts in Ireland in a robust manner for years to come.

My colleagues and I are happy to answer any questions members have.