Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I very much welcome the debate both as a Member of this House and as a long-time supporter of and participant in the arts. I am also pleased the motion is not being opposed.

As a Government we are cognisant of the value of the arts, and, as our programme for partnership Government notes, we promise to "work to progressively increase funding to the arts, including the Arts Council and the Irish Film Board, as the economy continues to improve". The previous budget saw a 12% increase in funding for the then Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.

We have a tendency to look for value for money in public spending. There is nothing wrong with that. For every €1 the Arts Council invests, more than 70 cent returns directly to the Exchequer in taxes, and when the Arts Council invests the remaining 30 cent it translates to a turnover of €2.50, which is more than an eight-fold return. However, that is only one side of the equation. The other is the intrinsic and unquantifiable value of the arts. While we might argue about the recent change of designation for the Department, what it means to those involved in the arts is that artists feel they are not being valued as they should be. That is an understandable concern. I know that the Minister, Deputy Heather Humphreys, is fully committed to the promotion of the arts. She has reiterated that point this evening. The problem is the message. The arts are all about symbology. The change in designation was a message that was heard loud and clear by the arts community. If the ideal of the arts in this country is Mozart, then I think we introduced Salieri by mistake. As a person from Galway, a county that is putting forward its bid to become the European Capital of Culture in 2020, and given that Galway city is synonymous with events such as the Galway Arts Festival, the Macnas parade and the Cúirt festival, I would find it impossible to explain the importance of the arts to the very fabric of Galway and the west, and to the entire island of Ireland.

I agree that the arts needs more money, support and programmes to be put in place, but most important of all it needs to be valued. The Government will do all it can to increase funding to the arts. Likewise, I will do everything I can to ensure we deliver on that commitment.

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