Cecilia Keaveney (Fianna Fail)

I thank the Minister of State for his reply and kind remarks. One would think I had seen his response earlier as I anticipated much of what was said.

If the arts is core to personal development then it must receive equal recognition in terms of funding from the Departments of Education and Science and Arts, Sports and Tourism. It is not good enough to leave it to the Arts Council to develop its own strategy and to obtain a couple of euro to do so.

Perhaps the Minister of State who has responsibility for children will consider speaking with the Minister of State with responsibility for mental health, Deputy Devins, to see if the four ministries and the Minister for Health and Children, whose role in this regard is central, can come together on this. We are underestimating our potential in this area. While funding is being increased it is not increasing as exponentially as this demands. The crux of my point is that a euro spent now will save many euro during a child's lifetime.