Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Senator Cummins and I are very concerned about the announcement, which was made on Friday, that the capacity in our theatres and arts venues is to be reduced to 50%. Such a decision must raise questions around the level of understanding of how theatres operate. Many productions cannot survive unless they operate at 70% to 80% capacity.

Theatres are safe and controlled venues. I was fortunate to be at the all-Ireland one act drama finals in Ennis on Sunday night. I was in Gorey Little Theatre on Friday night. I was in the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre on Thursday night of last week. In all of those cases, Covid certificates and identifications were checked. I have been in venues where my temperature was taken as I went in. They are responsible and safe venues.

This announcement, out of the blue, that they are going to 50% capacity from now has left groups scrambling. A lot of shows are pre-sold well in advance. First of all, the groups have to decide whether they are going to go ahead, and then decide which 50% will be allowed to attend some of the shows and which 50% will have to be refunded. Then there are the obvious financial implications of that.While much of the focus will be on professional theatres and professional performers, and that is important, what Senator Cummins and I are concerned about is that, in addition to looking after those groups, we have to look after our amateur community and semiprofessional productions around the country.

We are looking for is a commitment to put a financial support package in place for those groups that have lost out, ideally administered through the local authorities. Post 9 January, a commitment should also be given to provide support because groups planning pantomimes and so on for January do not know what to do. Finally, if it is discovered the Omicron variant is not as big of a risk as being talked about, in those circumstances can we look at lifting restrictions to give some clarity and certainty to the sector as soon as possible?