Sean Barrett (Independent) | Oireachtas source

This section should be removed from the Bill because it completely contradicts what the arts are about, namely, being subversive. The arts have to critique the established view of the world and, if necessary, undermine same.

Within the past ten days I attended the Wexford Festival Opera. This year's production of Hansel and Gretel featured the children sitting in cardboard boxes. The programme notes helpfully added that this was to reflect the neoliberal economics in Europe where Ministers practised austerity policies and, therefore, the festival could not afford sets as normal for the production. I must say that the music performed was sublime. Those are the kinds of details that one does not need to get involved in but it happens all of the time.

At present there is a play on the condom train to Belfast. The sale of contraceptives was against Government policy at the time but we are allowed to celebrate the genius behind the train. There is a play on the series of concerts that were scheduled to be performed by Garth Brooks that were cancelled by the chief executive of Dublin City Council, which is something that is subversive in terms of Government policy. What were Yeats, Lady Gregory, Seán O'Casey and J. M. Synge doing except precisely critiquing Government policy at the time? Now we cherish their legacy.

The play "Sive" was rejected on the first occasion it was submitted to the Abbey which was wrong and the people of Ireland have proved that to be the case. We have such a record of censoring books, films, etc., that censorship should not be extended. Colin Murphy writes all of the time about the disastrous people, as Senator Norris has said, who caused the financial collapse of this country. Does this mean that the musical on catastrophic bankruptcy by Colin Murphy shall not be performed in the National Concert Hall because it will undoubtedly contain critiques of people who were out of their depth in financial matters? If people want to sing about such matters or set them to music then that is fine by me. The legislation seems to be in the old Lord Chamberlain territory of censoring the arts. I can assure the Minister that we do not need to go there and believe the section should be removed.

The Royal Irish Academy organised a seminar on these issues and on that occasion Mr. Pat Cooke of the UCD school of arts history and cultural policy, said in terms of pursuing cultural goals, "The history of national institutions in Ireland reveals a fundamental ambivalence about whether they should be treated as functional arms of government or arm’s length bodies with independent boards." In terms of pursing cultural goals, they are not arms of the State. Ministers and senior civil servants should grow up and allow a free theatre and free musicals to develop which would be beneficial for the rest of society and for all of us.

This section is completely out of touch with the way younger people feel in this country at the moment. The arts must be creative and if that annoys some old fogeys then tough. Let us develop a creative society, one which we are always talking about doing in this country. Let us stop this kind of silly censorship. The chief executive officer is entitled to have whatever musicals he or she thinks will stimulate the cultural development of this country and, therefore, section 9 should go.