Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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7. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the plans in place or proposed to encourage diversity within the arts; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [47924/21]

Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I will ask this question on behalf of my colleague, Deputy Niamh Smyth. What plans exist to encourage diversity within the arts? I believe it is fair to say that all of us in this Chamber have missed the arts over the past 18 months. The artists were creative in every way they could be to try to engage with the public, however, be it virtually or otherwise. I commend the support of the Department but I would like to hear the Minister's plans.

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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The published statement of strategy for 2021 to 2023 for my Department sets out the priorities for this Department over the next few years to ensure all sectors recover and grow in a manner that underpins social cohesion and supports strong, sustainable economic growth with a focus on a number of cross-cutting goals of equality, diversity, social inclusion, the Irish language and environmental sustainability. One of the cross-cutting goals of the strategy is to support and promote diversity, social, inclusion and full and effective female participation across my Department’s sectors and society in line with programme for Government commitments.

Access to participation in arts and culture is one of the cornerstones of the national framework cultural policy. Culture 2025 underpins the right of everyone to participate in the cultural and creative life of the nation. My Department works with the Council of the National Cultural Institutions to encourage the development of universal audience access, including access for new communities, people with disabilities, the Traveller community and the LGBT+ communities.

The Arts Council of Ireland is the Government agency with responsibility for the arts and artists. Under the Arts Act 2003, the council provides primary responsibility for the promotion and support of the arts throughout the country. The council’s equality, human rights and diversity, EHRD, policy and strategy is designed to build on a range of existing Arts Council work areas. The council is committed to promoting and enhancing inclusion, diversity and equality.

It funds key arts organisations that have a central role in supporting these areas of work. These awards and schemes operated by the council are informed by the Arts Council‘s EHRD policy and strategy and the paying the artist policy. Diversity is a core organisational value in the Arts Council’s ten-year strategy. The council encourages board membership with knowledge of matters relating to diversity, equality and inclusion.

Screen Ireland is also committed to developing policies in these areas and plans to publish its diversity and inclusion strategy in 2022. My Department is working to achieve better gender balance and more diversity across membership of all the boards of the national cultural institutions and agencies under its remit.

Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I agree that diversity is very important. For too many communities, the arts are on the periphery rather than a core part of those communities. Diversity and inclusion should be the core values for how we view and support our arts. Diversity is important across arts practice in how artists make work and how people experience it. Importantly, support for cultural diversity within the arts sector will allow us to build and reflect an inclusive and diverse society. We need to open our cultural life to all communities and remove the barriers in place to ensure equal and active contribution, participation and enjoyment of the arts and culture for everybody.

I welcome the commitment in the programme for Government to support, through a consultative process, community groups, arts groups, cultural bodies, sports clubs, voluntary organisations and charities to recover and enhance their impact after Covid-19. We need make sure that the diverse voices are heard, welcomed and integrated into the arts community as part of this process. I welcome what the Minister said with regard to the Arts Council of Ireland and Screen Ireland.

I have two questions for her, however. What are the specific measures and plans to encourage diversity within the arts, particularly for people with disabilities or older people? RTÉ recently broadcast a segment on the Lough Ree Access For All boat, with which I am sure the Minister is familiar. Does she agree that more innovative programmes are needed to open access to the arts? What plans and measures are in place to ensure the voices of those impacted are heard as part of the consultative process?

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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My Department is developing a number of policies to support diversity and full and effective female presentation and engagement. I would point the Deputy to the Creative Ireland programme. There have been a number of initiatives that encourage diversity within the arts, for example, to facilitate the integration of migrant populations.

Songs from Direct Provision in south County Dublin; Song Seeking initiatives in Limerick; a film project called "Under Surveillance" in County Wicklow and a children's art exhibition in Tramore library are just some examples of projects that provide creative opportunities for people living in direct provision. The programme promotes the inclusion and participation of Travellers and Roma. For example, Cork community arts link is working collaboratively with the Travellers' visibility group on a large street art project for its premises. The project Crown - hair and identity in Traveller Culturefrom Mayo County Council wonderfully explores the subject of hair with Irish Traveller women as a powerful symbol of individuality and one which is intrinsically linked to identity, ethnicity, culture and gender.

I refer to the programme which supports people with disabilities, Le Chéile. The Open Youth Orchestra of Ireland is a cross-Border ensemble made up exclusively of musicians of with disabilities, including Down's Syndrome, autism and cerebral palsy. It was developed by the Royal Irish Academy of Music with Creative Ireland funding. It is the first open national youth orchestra in the world. There are quite a number of initiatives.

Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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There are wonderful programmes at work. We have seen the arts sector respond very creatively to presenting its programmes, be it virtually or otherwise. All of those programmes are extremely well received and vital to those communities, but the Minister should also look to those communities impacted long before we even heard of Covid, communities in disadvantaged areas. I am familiar with a number of programmes which have been run on shoestrings that did not or need not apply to the Arts Council for funding. One should try to be as broad and diverse as possible, in terms of new and existing communities. It is very important everyone experiences the arts, regardless of their backgrounds or status.

John Lahart (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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I know where the Minister's heart lies on this point. I have heard her perform, when she sang. It was in a church. It was for a very worthy cause, but the church happened to be the venue. The point I wanted to make is one close to my heart. Every parish and community in Ireland has clubs, pavilions and clubhouses. Sports capital has been incredibly successful. With the exception of those we know best, such as the civic theatre in Tallaght and the theatre in Dundrum, there are no dedicated performance spaces. A great ambition for the Minister to set herself over the period of this Government would be to achieve the establishment and integration of dedicated arts performance spaces in every community. Groups have to beg, borrow and steal, using the school hall, sports hall or the classroom to perform.

It was an excellent performance by the Minister.

Marc Ó Cathasaigh (Waterford, Green Party)
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The Deputy is doubly blessed to have heard the Minister sing and not to have heard the Acting Cathaoirleach.

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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I am stuck for words, which is a first. I thank Deputy Lahart. I will not sing it now.

In response to Deputy Devlin, due to my background teaching in DEIS schools, I have asked for more DEIS schools to be included in creative schools. Another great initiative is the fighting words creative writing programme, of which the Deputy is probably aware, that works with children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Deputy Lahart is probably aware of the local authority scheme for those creative spaces launched by my Department during the summer. Front and centre is finding those places for those interested in the arts to have easy, accessible spaces to perform.