Sharon Keogan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I formally request the presence of the Minister for arts, media and communication, Deputy Patrick O'Donovan, before this Chamber to address a number of profoundly concerning developments that have transpired within his Department. I am not referring in this instance to the inherited €7 million IT controversy or the oversized scanner.

The first matter pertains to the recent disclosure, only last week, that An Garda Síochána has been authorised to survey the private communications of the Irish publication Gript. This authorisation was granted by a District Court judge utilising a legal mechanism designed primarily for the investigation of drug trafficking, money laundering and the financing of terrorist organisations. The Minister must clarify whether his Department views this as an inappropriate application of this legal instrument. Following the revelation, the publication sought clarification from An Garda Síochána regarding whether this instrument has been employed to investigate other publications, a query to which the Garda did not provide a response. Should the Garda decline to answer, I urge the Minister to come before us and provide that information.The second issue involves the Abbey Theatre’s refusal to host a play that addresses the experiences of the victims and survivors of the 7 October massacre in Israel, which debuted in New York last year. After several weeks of being denied the opportunity to privately rent the theatre space on the grounds of prior bookings, the playwrights, Phelim McAleer and Ann McElhinney, were subsequently informed that their work was deemed incompatible with the remit of the theatre’s programming aims and ambitions. Meanwhile, the director of the theatre, Mr. Mark O’Brien, publicly shared his meeting with a Palestinian theatre group on social media. Considering the Abbey Theatre receives up to 80% of its funding from the Government, how does the Minister plan to guarantee that such venues remain true spaces for free expressions and artistic creativity? I ask this House to reflect on the fact that the Abbey Theatre was once a venue that braved through the street riots during the premiere of Synge’s The Playboy of the Western World, which is now a celebrated part of our national artistic heritage. What future awaits our art scene if this is the current state of affairs?