Fintan Warfield (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Madigan, on her appointment and wish her well. I ask the new Minister to clarify the excessive spending on marketing and public relations in the Creative Ireland budget. A freedom of information response that has been received on foot of a request from Sinn Féin shows that less than 33% of the €4.4 million budget that has been spent on the Creative Ireland programme to date has been spent on supporting genuine cultural activity. By contrast, 30% of the budget, or €1.3 million, has been spent on marketing. I suppose I am continuing the trend of Opposition Senators expressing concern about the Government's marketing initiatives. Artists are struggling to make ends meet. The Taoiseach has yet to set out a roadmap to outline how the Government will double arts funding. It is disheartening to see the Department spending excessively on marketing initiatives rather than supporting artists. One has to wonder whether the Creative Ireland initiative is a window-dressing exercise for the Department. The Creative Ireland budget will be increased from €4.4 million to €8.5 million in 2018. I ask the Minister, Deputy Madigan, to ensure this increase has a real and genuine impact on cultural activity and on the lived experience and work of our artists.