Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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87. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if it is still Government policy that all members of boards of national cultural institutions would serve on a pro bono basis; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [47043/14]

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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This is like the start of the graveyard shift. The question simply seeks the Government to elucidate whether it and the Minister remain committed to the position as set out by her predecessor that members of the boards of the cultural institutions will serve on a pro bonobasis.

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. In the context of the Government's public service reform plan published in November 2011, the Department conducted a critical examination of the structure and operation of a range of cultural institutions and bodies, including the National Gallery of Ireland, the Irish Museum of Modern Art, the Crawford Art Gallery, Cork, the National Library, the National Museum, the National Archives, the Irish Manuscripts Commission and the National Concert Hall. The Government subsequently approved a number of key reforms arising from the review, including on governance, the reinforcement of curatorial independence and identity, shared supports and statutory underpinning.

The new arrangements envisage that, henceforth, the boards or equivalent structures at the institutions and bodies reviewed under the public service reform plan will operate on a pro bonobasis. In advance of giving legal effect to these arrangements, the relevant bodies were requested to implement this policy on an administrative basis and all have done so.

The Department has drafted general schemes of Bills for a number of national cultural institutions, which have been approved by Government and submitted to the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel for drafting. They have also been submitted to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht for pre-legislative scrutiny. A provision that the boards of the relevant institutions will operate on a pro bonobasis is included in these general schemes.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister for her response and I acknowledge that when she recently made a detailed presentation to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht we dealt with this issue, particularly as it relates to the Arts Council. I remain somewhat uncertain as to what is the position. In 2013, the then Minister, Deputy Deenihan, advertised vacancies with regard to the chair and five members of the Arts Council. It was indicated quite clearly at that stage that these members would serve on a pro bonobasis. One assumes people looking at this advertisement and thinking about the possibility of providing the service could have been influenced by the fact there was no remuneration to be had, but subsequently it appeared the chair and members appointed had been remunerated. If the Minister is now saying this was done because there is a legal requirement to do so, will she please set out what is the legal requirement and whether there is a difficulty with the advertisement as initially published by the then Minister, Deputy Deenihan?

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The Department is in the process of updating legislation on the cultural institutions, which will include a provision that members of the boards will operate on a pro bonobasis.

In the meantime the cultural institutions are implementing this on an administrative basis. My predecessor sought to move the Arts Council to a pro bonomodel on a voluntary basis and the advertisement issued on that basis. I understand that my predecessor and the chair of the Arts Council subsequently agreed that while all members would be asked to waive their fees, it would be a matter for decision by each individual member as to whether to do so. Over the past number of years some council members have opted to waive their fees and I understand that full details on fees and expenses are published every year on the council's website. It is not intended to amend the Arts Act 2003 regarding fees.

The Deputy referred to people who might have chosen not to apply to serve on the basis on the basis that no fee was payable. That is speculative. I fully accept that what was done was done in good faith. It was done in the context of moving to a broad pro bono model in the arts and cultural area.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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If moving to a pro bonobasis was the objective, sadly it would appear that the objective has not been achieved. Are the chair and the five new members being remunerated or not? If they are, how many are being remunerated and how many have opted to serve in accordance with the original advertisement which suggested it would be done on a pro bonobasis?

The Minister has said that she does not intend to legislate. However, she has suggested - if not here then at the Joint Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht - that an amendment of the legislation was necessary in order to achieve pro bonoservice from all the members of the board. Why is she not proposing to legislate?

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Full details of the remuneration and expenses paid to the Arts Council in 2011 and 2012 are set out in the report. Details of the 2013 payments will be included in the 2013 annual report which will be published shortly and will appear on the website. Some have obviously decided to waive the fees and some are taking their payment.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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That is not satisfactory.

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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However, that is the way it is. As I said, my predecessor and the chair of the Arts Council subsequently agreed that while all members would be asked to waive their fees, it would be a matter for decision by each member whether to do so. The Arts Council was not included in the public service reform plan. The public service reform plan covered a number of cultural institutions, including the gallery, IMMA, the Crawford Art Gallery, the National Library, the National Museum, the National Archives, the Irish Manuscripts Commission and the National Concert Hall. We are in the process of updating that legislation. That is currently with the committee.