Mary Upton (Dublin South Central, Labour)

Regarding the arts in education report which involves the Department of Education and Science, a game of ping-pong appears to have been going on for some time. I acknowledge that I received a letter from the Arts Council informing me that at the most recent meeting of the council it was decided to publish the report in the coming weeks, which I welcome as we have been seeking it for some time. Would it be possible to expedite these reports in some way such that one Department would take responsibility for implementing the reports' proposals? This issue has been passed back and forth between the Departments of Education and Science and Arts, Sport and Tourism. I recognise the need for that interaction and I would be the first to seek co-operation between the Departments, but in reality there is a game of ping-pong going on between the two Departments with nobody taking responsibility.

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