Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for her response. To take up the last point, will she give us a commitment that not only will she consult with the Cabinet but she will also consult the Dáil on any decision about the disposal of Ardmore? While I welcome the fact the Minister is talking about it as a going concern, and I obviously welcome the commitment of the county council to retain the zoning, which would mean it cannot, for example, be sold off for housing, if we do not definitively secure its future as an operating film studio, zoning can change further down the line. That, in itself, does not secure its long-term future. While I take the point that Enterprise Ireland is not in the business of running film studios, the State has to make a clear commitment that it is going to maintain the studio. There needs to be joined-up thinking between Creative Ireland and the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs in terms of understanding that the Government has to guarantee its future. If necessary, if we cannot get a buyer, we should think about the workers buy-out proposal or the State buying over the rest of the shareholding.

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