Ms Orlaith McBride:

On the question of resources, as part of Ireland 2016, we announced recently a national commissions competition. We indicated to artists and arts organisations that we were putting €1 million into that and were seeking projects of up to €500,000. We received €28 million worth of applications for the available €1 million. That is the most recent round through which we are going at present. Approximately one in ten artists who apply to the Arts Council seeking a bursary, a commission or a small grant to pursue a piece of work are funded, particularly in the visual arts and literature. At present, we are going through theatre projects, which involve many of the pieces of theatre one will see at the Galway Arts Festival or that Mr. Brendan Flynn will bring to Clifden. We have approximately €500,000 in that round and have received €3.5 million worth of applications. It can be soul-destroying at times and I am sure that, as elected representatives, members then receive representations on the other side to the effect that funding was not forthcoming from the Arts Council. It is a very difficult scenario through which to manage one's way because the expectation is huge. There are more artists, third level colleges and visual artists as well as greater numbers of MFAs, creative writing graduates and so on. More people are coming into the sector and yet we cannot respond.

As I said earlier, the contribution last year of the Galway Arts Festival to the local economy was €17.5 million. In 2008, it contributed €24.5 million to the local economy. I would be of the view that the reduction in its Arts Council funding from €750,000 to less than €500,000 has had a disproportionate impact on the local economy. The more one invests, the greater the impact on the economy, disproportionately. The demand is huge, as is expectation. The more we create an ecology whereby third level colleges contribute to the creation of artists and creative entrepreneurs, the more the Arts Council should be better able to respond.