Seanad debates

Tuesday, 18 December 2018

Irish Film Board (Amendment) Bill 2018: Second Stage

 

12:30 pm

Photo of Alice-Mary HigginsAlice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House. I also welcome the Bill which I will be supporting through the various stages. It has been shown clearly that huge dividends come from investment in film and the wider audiovisual sector and not only in terms of the employment created and the money generated. The sector has grown substantially and even when other sectors were shrinking, Irish film continued to thrive, win awards and win recognition. As I said, the dividends are not just financial. Film expands our ability to tell stories, ask questions and offer perspectives on the shared human condition and the very specific local human condition.It is extraordinarily positive for Ireland that our film makers, actors, storytellers, and some the social questions posed by Irish films have had a huge impact internationally. They have shaped Ireland's reputation and, in many cases, international conversations. There is huge value to the investment in film in economic, social and cultural terms on a local, national and international level. With this Bill, we are raising the ceiling for an individual investment from €300 million to €500 million. I support this proposal. This is part of a quality agenda, in terms of ensuring that what we produce and invest in is of the highest international standard. However, with that quality agenda there must be an agenda in respect of the quality of employment. Earlier this year, this House passed the Competition (Amendment) Bill 2017. It is important in that it allows those working in the creative industries, including the film and audiovisual industries, to organise and campaign together for better conditions because people in these industries are moving from project to project, with gaps of unemployment in between. It is appropriate that as we approve the raising of this ceiling, which we hope will lead to many brilliant cultural projects that raise the roof in various settings, we would also seek a raising of standards. I accept it was not possible for the Minister to accept the amendment put forward by Deputy Ó Snodaigh in respect of standards in the industry but, perhaps, she would indicate her plans and intentions in this regard, beyond an amendment. The Minister in her speech spoke about employment standards within public bodies such as Screen Ireland, which I appreciate, but we need to look to the question of standards within the wider industry and how, as we raise our investment in this area, we raise regulatory expectation for standards within the sector. It is important that there are routes through the sector and that projects in receipt of significant public investment would provide opportunities for people, as they move from project to project and move from trainee to higher levels. We must have ladders of progression reflected across the sector if they cannot be reflected within individual projects.

Gender equality and Vótáil 100 were mentioned. Some of the many commemorations we had of the year have been in the audiovisual area. Some wonderful films were produced by the Oireachtas unit and others. On gender equality, if film making is one of the ways that we internationally tell our stories, we must ensure it reflects the diversity and creativity of the nation. It is appropriate that we increase our expectations from Screen Ireland in respect of gender. I acknowledge Screen Ireland has committed to a 50:50 gender balance by 2020. I ask the Minister to indicate how she is engaging with Screen Ireland and the sector on the issue of gender equality. The Minister also referred in her speech to Employment Equality Act 1998 (Code of Practice) (Harassment) Order 2012. In terms of our public bodies, we should be seeking to ensure that they not only comply with the law but strive for the highest standards in terms of their policies in regard to dignity in the workplace and so on and that they would set a template of expectations for the wider industry.

I support this Bill, which I am sure will move rapidly through its Remaining Stages. I ask the Minister to indicate how she proposes to ensure this sector is a quality sector not only in terms of output but in terms of the experience of those working within it and how we can move that forward together.

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