Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

There are thousands of schools in the country. I am really anxious that schools in the delivering equality of opportunity in schools, DEIS, system and schools in less well-off areas are able to access this very important programme as soon as possible. Perhaps the Minister could tell us about that.

The second point I want to make is that much of Creative Ireland will result in events at local community and regional level. That is all to the good. However, there is a crisis in the arts community concerning remuneration for people who work in the arts, who are employed not on a full-time basis but part-time or as events arise. Does the Minister's Department have an embedded policy to ensure that people working at different levels in these programmes get a living wage, or at least a minimum wage? I am not aware of the Department having a policy of ensuring that all the people employed on a part-time, full-time or temporary basis at the events it supports are paid a living wage.

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