Liz McManus (Wicklow, Labour)
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Question 11: To ask the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism his views on the report by the Irish Film Board to his Department on studio facilities here; if a decision has been taken by him on progress in this area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10830/08]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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The availability of adequate, fully equipped studio resources that can cater for the needs of indigenous and incoming film and television productions is essential to marketing Ireland as a film location. The Irish Film Board was asked to prepare a report on the future options available for film studios in Ireland. With the support of independent consultants, the Irish Film Board, which is our national film agency and which, inter alia, promotes Ireland as a location for international film production, submitted its proposals to me on how to ensure that Ireland has its own film studio. With the assistance of the Office of Public Works, my Department is working on assuring the future availability of film studios in Ireland. That process is currently at a sensitive point and I do not wish to be drawn on the state of play on discussions, but it is my intention to bring the matter to successful conclusion shortly.

Mary Upton (Dublin South Central, Labour)
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If the negotiations are at a delicate stage, I understand that it would not be appropriate to go into detail on the issue. It is very important that we have our film studio and the Minister might be able to comment on issues such as the economies of scale. I am looking for a much wider discussion on the Irish film industry. We need to be able to encourage people to come into this country to make films here. There has unfortunately been a drop-off in activity recently. We must make a serious effort to put in place the right kind of environment and incentives for the film makers to come to Ireland to support and sustain that studio.

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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I have often said that we are only scratching the surface when it comes to the Irish film industry. There is great potential, but we need to roll up our sleeves and come at it from a fresh direction. There are almost 2,000 people employed full time in the industry, which is the highest number since 2000. We are doing very well in television and we have also had wonderful successes in the Oscars and with other awards. I am bit concerned that we have not managed to attract feature films in sufficient quantity. We were able to attract many such films years ago, but we have only done one or two in recent years. I have instructed the Department and the Irish Film Board to figure out the problem and I will see what I can do to respond to it.

The Minister for Finance extended the tax concession in the budget, which was widely welcomed by the industry and which should help somewhat. We are only scratching the surface and we can do much more. I look forward to working with the film industry to making that happen.