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

It is very important that, as Irish people and as a Government, we support the theatre sector. There have been a number of initiatives over the past two years since I have been Minister to strengthen the sector, attempting in some way to bring forward new proposals and ideas. Some examples include the launch of gender policies for ten of Ireland's most important theatre companies and an €80 million redevelopment programme for the Abbey Theatre, for which I announced preliminary appraisal in September. Importantly, in March 2018, I held an event with the theatre sector at the Irish Theatre Institute to launch Speak Up & Call it Out, which sought to establish a code of conduct to address the abuse of power in the Irish and international theatre sectors. Furthermore, I spoke at the Youth at the Centre seminar on theatre, which was held in Blanchardstown.

See this speech in context