Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak to the motion and thank Deputy Ó Snodaigh for introducing it. We are all in agreement that the Irish audiovisual industry is of the utmost importance as part of the cultural, artistic and economic life of Ireland. My Department shares the objectives of the Oireachtas joint committee to develop the industry, enhance the experience of all stakeholders in the sector, promote growth and see the continued expression of Ireland’s creativity through the medium of film in order that it is enjoyed by a global audience.

The report, Development and Working Conditions in the Irish Film Industry, which was published last July, dovetails neatly with the launch of my Department's audiovisual action plan a few weeks earlier in June 2018. Colleagues will recall that in April 2018, I joined with the Taoiseach and the Minister for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform to launch my Department's capital investment plan, Investing in our Culture, Language and Heritage 2018-2027, which includes the Government's commitment to provide €1.2 billion in capital funding for culture, heritage and our language over a ten-year period. Of that amount, €200 million is to be invested in media production and the audiovisual industry over the ten years to 2027 as part of the implementation of the audiovisual action plan which aims to make Ireland a global leader in the sector.

An audiovisual steering group was set up to implement the action plan and the steering group comprises all Departments and State agencies involved in the industry. The steering group will work to implement the eight policy recommendations in the action plan. The steering group also took on the task of addressing the recommendations of the joint committee's report. As Deputy Ó Snodaigh said, the first recommendation emphasises the importance of section 481 to the film industry.

I echo those sentiments. Section 481 is a key and central component to the Irish screen sector. Colleagues will be aware that changes were made to this film tax credit in the Finance Act 2018, and were designed to speed-up the time required to decide on applications for relief. Previously, applications were made directly to Revenue. Now a producer company applies directly to my Department for a certificate stating the film is to be treated as a qualifying film for the purpose of section 481. My Department has published guidelines and an application form on the Department website, and the new system has been in effect since 27 March 2019.

I was also pleased to note the announcement in the budget speech in October last that the section 481 tax relief for the film industry would be extended beyond its 2020 deadline to 2024. As the film tax relief is a state aid, the consent of the European Commission is required, and a notification has gone to the Commission, from which a decision is awaited.

Recommendation No. 2 of the Oireachtas joint committee report refers to working terms and conditions. I am pleased to inform the House that this recommendation has been implemented in recent months and since 28 March, all applicants for section 481, including the producer company and the qualifying company, have been required to sign an undertaking that they will comply with their obligations under employment law. As a condition of certification, the companies must also have in place written policies and procedures regarding grievances, discipline and dignity in work, including harassment, bullying and equal opportunity. Screen Ireland has also introduced similar conditions for receipt of its funding. This now links funding to employment standards as proposed in recommendation No. 1.

Recommendation No. 3 refers to reform of training. Last November, Screen Skills Ireland, the training and skills development division of Screen Ireland, held an education forum for the audiovisual industry. This forum brought together screen industry stakeholders, education and trading providers and policy influencers to focus on the skills development challenges and opportunities. The forum was a success and will be repeated this year. In the matter of the training requirements of section 482, changes targeted at improving outcomes have recently been effected. Deputies may be aware that certification for the tax relief is conditional on delivery of defined levels of training and upskilling. This requirement has been amended and the focus is now on skills development that is linked to quality and a more expansive range of skills development at all levels, including hard skills, soft skills, future skills, technical skills and leadership skills. As part of these revised requirements, films with eligible expenditure of over €2 million must have their skills development plans agreed in advance with Screen Ireland.

The plans developed by Screen Ireland require applicants to consider carefully the skills needs of the production, the company, the participant and the sector as a whole and to reflect on how the planned activity will address skills needs across different levels and different departments of the production, from new entrants, trainees arid crew to above-the-line talent and company leaders. This is designed to move away from a system where individuals are labelled as trainees. It goes some way towards addressing the concerns that the Oireachtas joint committee flagged. A post-project skills development compliance report must also be submitted to Screen Ireland in order that the impact and outcomes of the training might be captured and quality assured.

Screen Skills Ireland and other providers of training can support skills development. Education providers and Government agencies can work towards developing programmes or systems of accreditation but accreditation of itself does not always guarantee progression. There is an onus on the industry to facilitate and encourage the organic development and progression of skilled individuals in accordance with their experience. I am aware, from information relayed to the joint committee in previous sessions, that this already has been the experience of a number of people within the industry.

While I am on the topic of recommendation No. 3, I will also set out some of the excellent work that is being done on training and the geographical spread of training courses. In terms of accredited courses, Screen Ireland has submitted two level 9 courses, namely, creative leadership and advanced producers, to be developed and certified through Springboard. These courses are in direct response to one of the recommendations in the Olsberg report that new business skills courses be generated that focus specifically on the needs of creative sector companies. Screen Ireland is also developing a certified level 8 apprenticeship programme for the role of computer-generated imagery, CGI, technical artist in the animation and related sectors.

Skillnet Ireland, the national agency for the promotion and facilitation of workforce learning in Ireland, currently has 23 programmes planned for 2019 that are of relevance to workers in the film industry. These programmes include courses in business skills, leadership and project management through animation Skillnet; design enterprise Skillnet; greasán na meán Skillnet and screen Skillnet. A sub-committee of the audiovisual action plan steering group was established earlier this year to oversee the implementation of the recommendations on training and skills in the audiovisual action plan. The members of this sub-committee are drawn from my Department, Screen Skills Ireland, the Department of Education and Skills, the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland and Enterprise Ireland. Their work will be incorporated in to a report on the plan, due to be submitted to me later this year.

There are many good examples of training taking place right across the industry. When Screen Producers Ireland appeared before the joint committee in January 2018, its representatives spoke of the excellent work done by Troy Studios in Limerick in collaboration with Screen Skills Ireland, Limerick Institute of Technology, the University of Limerick and the education and training boards in providing training and many graduates from the immediate surrounds have obtained work in the industry. We want to see more of these exemplars in the regions and it is expected that the regional film development uplift, for which EU approval is awaited, will do much to promote skills development outside of traditional hubs of film production.

Recommendation No. 4 called for Screen Ireland to constitute a film forum to allow all stakeholders to meet and work together to develop mutually beneficial solutions for the industry. This has not taken place as not all the stakeholders referred to by the Oireachtas joint committee are prepared to meet as a single forum. Last autumn, Screen Ireland commenced work to organise a forum with an independent chair as recommended in the Oireachtas joint committee report. Screen Ireland has independently reported back to the Oireachtas joint committee that it has not proved possible to constitute a forum of all stakeholders. I agree with the view of Screen Ireland that it seems likely now that, rather than adopting a collaborative inclusive approach in an atmosphere where ideas are exchanged and developed for the good of the industry, the forum probably would constitute little more than the airing of disputes and grievances. Such issues should, of course, be dealt with through the appropriate mechanisms provided by the State, some of which were mentioned by Deputy Ó Snodaigh earlier, such as the Workplace Relations Commission.

Recommendation No. 5 of the report calls for an international comparative study to analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the section 481 credit. Since publication of this report, as part of its work for the Finance Bill 2018, the Department of Finance published its review of the section, entitled "Review IV: Cost Benefit Analysis of Section 481 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 - Film Corporation Tax Credit". This analysis has been the catalyst for the administrative changes to the application process that I have outlined.

In the matter of recommendation No. 6, it is important to note in the first instance that the board of Screen Ireland, under the provisions of the Irish Film Board Acts, is not a representative board in the sense of comprising representatives from the various industry sectors. Section 12 of the Act provides that seven members shall be appointed to the board by the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht with the consent of the Minister for Finance for a period of not more than four years. That said, however, vacancies on the board which arise are advertised by the Public Appointments Service, PAS, and anyone who meets the requirements as set out by PAS may submit an application. There are currently no vacancies on the board. The next vacancies will arise in March 2020, when three vacancies will arise. The function of the board is set out in section 4 of the Irish Film Board Act 1980, which states that the board "shall assist and encourage by any means it considers appropriate the making of films in the State and the development of an industry in the State for the making of films". Screen Ireland’s mission is to support and promote Irish film, television and animation through fostering Irish artistic vision and our diverse creative and production talent, growing audiences, and attracting film-makers and investment into the country and all members of the board, regardless of their sector of the industry, must work towards that vision.

Turning to recommendation No. 8, which comes within the remit of my colleague, the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Deputy Regina Doherty, I would remind the House that the Employment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2018 was passed in December, which addresses insecurity and unpredictability of working hours for employees on insecure contracts and those working variable hours.

These measures came into effect on 4 March this year.

Recommendation No. 9 relates to the integration of the film industry with that in Northern Ireland. Screen Ireland works with its Northern Ireland counterpart, Northern Ireland Screen, in efforts to attract inward production to the island of Ireland. In January, for example, Screen Ireland announced that, in conjunction with Northern Ireland Screen, it had teamed up with an international sales and film finance company Bankside Films on a joint venture that intends to produce and fully fund up to two feature films per year. It targets projects with a budget of up to €1.5 million and creative teams on each project will come from both the North and South. This is a clear example of continuing co-operation of the film industry on a North-South basis. It must be acknowledged, however, that Northern Ireland also competes to attract internationally mobile inward production.

I hope I have given a flavour of the significant advances made by the Government in the audiovisual industry in the ten months since the publication of the Oireachtas committee report. The Government will continue with the implementation of the audiovisual action plan which delivers ongoing dividends in the industry in line with the overall objectives of Project Ireland 2040.

A report prepared by the Olsberg SPI and Nordicity consultants and published last year found that the audiovisual and radio sector support approximately 17,000 full-time equivalent jobs and generated a gross value of €1.1 billion to the economy.

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