Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Question 1: To ask the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism if he will report on the value for money being achieved from the per cent for arts scheme; if he will recommend a revaluation of the scheme to determine if it is achieving best outcomes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10974/08]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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As Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism I have responsibility for the promotion of the per cent for art scheme. At present my Department is chairing the interdepartmental public art committee. This committee is examining the current guidelines for the scheme and it will report to me on the matter early in due course. In that context, information on investment under the scheme is being collected from all participating Departments and agencies. When that information is available, a true assessment of the impact of the scheme can be made. There is no doubt that the visual impact of this scheme has been overwhelmingly positive. If the guidelines need to be updated, especially in the context of the monetary cap on the scheme, or in the context of proportionality, the guidelines will be republished.

The per cent for art scheme has enhanced and embellished our land, city and townscapes immeasurably. The scheme has given an invaluable platform to many of our visual artists and I look forward to its continued relevance.

Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I hope the Minister has more luck than I had in gathering information about art pieces when I submitted questions to all Departments. The feedback I received was worrying. I agree that the scheme has major potential and has provided art around the country, has provided employment to young, emerging and established artists and has raised awareness of art. It has major potential but from what little research I have done it seems we are not getting the best bang for our buck. Most Departments have no clue how much they have spent. Three Departments had a vague idea of what they had spent but in most cases where they had an idea, capital projects that would have qualified for the per cent for art scheme did not draw it down. What I found most worrying was the opportunity lost by the scheme. The Departments of Health and Children; Transport; and the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, the three big spending Departments in terms of capital projects, had no idea how much they had spent and no way of finding out. They did not see any reason to keep a register of what had happened in the past or to change their ways in the future. The exception is the HSE, which is considering employing someone to deal with public art. To date, no one knows what art is out there, there is no register or audit and no idea if items purchased with public money are still in place. Driving around the country, I see that pieces of outdoor sculpture have been stolen or defaced or degraded by the environment. Also, inappropriate pieces are being purchased and I am worried about the quality of the selection process and the monitoring of projects. Is anything happening in that regard?

I appreciate that most counties have an arts officer but they tend to be called in only for work undertaken by the local authority. We must use the resources we have to allow local authorities to take on public arts officers or consultant arts officers working between a few counties. There must be more monitoring of the scheme if we are to get bang for our buck. Does the Minister agree? I wish him well in seeking a register of what is out there, which I failed to do.

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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This scheme goes back a long way, to 1978, when the Office of Public Works established an artistic embellishment scheme based upon the principles of the per cent for art scheme, whereby 1% of all construction budgets could be applied to an artistic feature. In 1986 the Department of the Environment established a similar scheme and the Minister with responsibility for arts became involved thereafter. It has a long history and has been underused. I would like to breathe new life into it by relaunching it. With that in mind, an interdepartmental committee on public art has been reconvened and has held three meetings to date. The committee is tasked with reviewing the guidelines of the scheme.

Some people confuse the scheme with motorway art. It could be a hospital or school that spends the 1% on its grounds. There is a cap on the scheme and for projects costing between €2.5 million and €6.3 million, an art budget of 1%, up to a maximum of €38,000 is allowed. For projects costing between €6.3 million and €12.7 million, an art budget of €51,000 is allowed. If we are to make progress we must change the caps. The figure of 1% does not quite capture it. I support the concept and would like to breathe new life into it and relaunch it. I will keep the pressure on the committee.

Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I welcome that. In terms of the cap, there is potential and the Minister needs someone in charge of the scheme locally to draw three or four together. We could get better value for money if one project was undertaken. It does not need to be sculpture, it could be a piece of work or a music programme.

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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I take note of that.