Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

The section 481 film tax relief and any changes to the relief are a matter for my cabinet colleague, the Minister for Finance.

I am sure that the House will join me in congratulating "The Banshees of Inisherin" on the four BAFTAs it secured on Sunday night, especially Kerry Condon and Barry Keoghan for their best supporting acting roles. This film was supported by section 481. I would also like to commend TG4, the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, BAI, and Screen Ireland for supporting the pipeline of high-quality drama content in the Irish language, especially "An Cailín Ciúin". The section 481 tax relief also supported the making of that film, which is in contention for an Oscar. Section 481 was also an important component in the financing of "The Banshees of Inisherin", which along with "An Cailín Ciúin", is central to the record number of Oscar nominations secured by Irish films and filmmakers in 2023. I would like to take this opportunity again to convey my deepest condolences to the family and colleagues of James Flynn, who died last week. He played a prominent role in the making of "The Banshees of Inisherin", and was a leading figure in Irish film and TV drama production.

As the Deputy will be aware, TG4, in conjunction with Udarás na Gaeltachta, published a proposal to establish a section 481 Gaeltacht uplift. My officials have met with them to discuss the proposal. The proposal will also be considered by the steering group overseeing the Government's ten-year audiovisual action plan and be the subject of consultation with sectoral stakeholders. Ultimately, it will be examined, along with a number of other related issues, in the context of ongoing engagement with the Department of Finance on film incentives ahead of the budget later this year. This will typically include bilateral engagement with the Minister for Finance.

With regard to the analysis of the impact of the section 481 regional uplift, as part of budget 2023 the Minister for Finance published the Budget 2023 Report on Tax Expenditures 2022. This included a chapter on the cost-benefit analysis of the section 481 film tax credit that was undertaken by his Department in September 2022. The analysis covers the regional uplift and the report is available online. Screen Ireland also undertakes interventions in the regions that advance the Government's objective of balanced regional development.

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