Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The Minister expressed a very philistine and utilitarian view of the arts. The arts does help to project Ireland, but that is not the purpose of the arts; it is one of the bonuses of the arts. It is very philistine of her to say that the IDA says the arts are its best calling card. They may be, but that is not the purpose of the arts. The purpose of the arts is for artists in Ireland to be able to express their creativity and tell us about ourselves.

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