Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 29: To ask the Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport if she will outline the number of projects she has put in place in the area of tourism, culture and sport with a view to focusing on economic benefits achievable through the media of tourism, culture and sport thus contributing to economic expansion and recovery; if she will outline the extent to which she has given instructions in this regard; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27141/10]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 187: To ask the Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport the extent to which she has had discussions with cultural and sporting groups, bodies or agencies with a view to achieving a co-ordinated approach and utilisation of sporting and cultural activities to enhance the national image and consequently assist in economic recovery; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27491/10]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 188: To ask the Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport the extent to which she has met with sporting and cultural groups with a view to acceding to the request of such bodies in the context of economic recovery; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27492/10]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 29, 187 and 188 together.

My Department and its associated Agencies and Bodies have fully or partially funded thousands of projects in the tourism, culture and sport sectors, details of which can be found on the Department's corporate website at www.tcs.gov.ie or on the websites of the relevant Agencies. I also meet on an ongoing basis, with tourism, culture and sport interests, including public and private agencies and bodies, with a view to enhancing our national image and promoting sustainable economic development.

Tourism is a key element of the Government's wider strategy for economic renewal, and this was reflected in Budget 2010. The overall tourism services budget was increased by 3% from the 2009 outturn to more than €153 million. Tourism has also been included in cross-cutting measures to support enterprises and jobs, including the Employment Subsidy Scheme and the Credit Review System. Additional specific measures, such as changes in alcohol excise duties and VAT and the innovative rail travel initiative for senior citizens, will also enhance the sector.

To assist the tourism sector, an extensive range of marketing, product development, festival and sporting events, and training and business supports are being put in place by the tourism State agencies under the tourism services budget of the Department. In marketing the island of Ireland overseas, Tourism Ireland is focusing on major markets that are likely to deliver immediate returns, including Great Britain, Germany and the US. Tourism Ireland is engaged at present in a huge tactical marketing programme, communicating strong reasons to visit together with clear, price-led messages focusing on the great value to be found here. Earlier this month, I launched a €20 million summer overseas marketing drive designed to win visitors for the peak season.

On the domestic front, Fáilte Ireland has launched a promotional campaign to encourage holidaying at home this year, with a budget of €4 million. Investment in business, sporting and cultural events is also being increased. Fáilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland are also boosting promotion of business tourism in the build up to the opening, later this year, of the national conference centre in Dublin. This state-of-the-art facility will further enhance Ireland's capacity to attract international events. In addition, increased funding has been allocated in 2010 for the continued roll out of Tourism Product Development investment support, leading to the development of improved tourism infrastructure and new and upgraded tourist attractions and activities.

The culture, arts and film sectors are also of huge economic importance, and funding by the Department is crucial to supporting employment in these areas. The Global Irish Economic Forum at Farmleigh recognised that culture is key to Ireland's global reputation and our attractiveness as a place to work, visit and invest. Cultural tourism is a key element of Ireland's tourism industry. The list of top visitor attractions is dominated by natural and built heritage, with festivals and musical and other events also attracting major numbers of attendees.

The level of funding provided by my Department for cultural development will allow for continued progress of projects already approved under the Arts and Culture Capital Enhancement Support Scheme (ACCESS) that commenced in 2001. Under ACCESS, grants totalling more than €85 million have been awarded for the development of 120 projects throughout the country to develop the arts and culture infrastructure. ACCESS has been widely acknowledged as a significant intervention in the provision of quality cultural spaces, and it provides opportunities for local employment as well as attracting cultural tourists to cities and towns throughout the country.

The funding provided by my Department to the Irish Film Board has ensured support to meet the demands of the industry in the areas of project and talent development, training and indigenous film and television production. The industry is a very important one with substantial levels of employment and significant inward investment. The benefits of high levels of film and television production in Ireland include increased international investment in the economy, increased employment in this sector, positive spin-off effects for promoting Ireland as a tourist destination and the improvement of Ireland as a location for all aspects of creative endeavours.

The recent publication by the National Archives, which forms part of my Department, of the 1901 Census Online provides an opportunity to market Ireland as a tourist destination to members of the Irish diaspora who can now find records of their ancestors on the web. Many may simply be interested in visiting Ireland to see where their ancestors came from, while others may wish to carry out more detailed genealogical research in Ireland. During visits to New York and London over the next week, I intend to launch the 1901 Census Online in the United States and Britain, and Tourism Ireland will pursue the opportunity further in forthcoming marketing campaigns.

Allied to this, my Department hosts the website www.irishgenealogy.ie which contains a web-based search facility for the Church records of baptism, marriage and death. On 16 June last, I had the pleasure of launching further Church records on this site made up of Church of Ireland records for Dublin City, Counties Carlow and Kerry and Roman Catholic Records for the County and City of Cork. The website now contains more than 2 million records of Church baptism, marriage and burial from Counties Carlow, Kerry, Cork and Dublin City. Work is currently ongoing to add up to a further 1 million Church baptism, marriage and burial records from Dublin City and County Cork, and this work should be substantially completed by the end of 2010.

To complement cultural tourism initiatives, Culture Ireland's programmes promote Irish arts worldwide, creating new international career and income opportunities which are vital for those working in the Irish cultural sector. Culture Ireland's showcases at global arts events such as the Edinburgh Festivals, Venice Biennale and Arts Presenters Conference in New York not only generate new international work and investment for Irish artists but also position Ireland as a world leader in creativity and cultural innovation.

Sport is also a major contributor to the economy, a contribution which includes sports tourism, ticket sales, subscriptions, the cost of playing sport, together with the purchase of sports equipment and an economic value of time given by volunteers. In addition, the Lansdowne Road Stadium Development Company, which is responsible for the development and management of the new Aviva stadium, intends to hold 50 major sporting events in the stadium over a five-year period, which is estimated to generate €2 to 2.5 billion for the economy.

In terms of employment, the Irish Sports Council, through its grant funding, supports a large number of jobs throughout the country, including in the order of 1,500 jobs created through the National Governing Bodies of Sport and the Local Sports Partnerships. The Department's capital expenditure on sport is also a major contributor to employment. It is estimated that the 2009 capital expenditure on the Sports Capital Programme leveraged direct employment of more than 1,700 and indirect employment in the region of 600. Further employment is created through investment in the Local Authority Swimming Pool Programme and major projects such as the redevelopment of the Lansdowne Road Stadium.

It is evident that through the initiatives/projects supported both at Department and Agency level that the tourism, culture and sport sectors are contributing greatly to the economy of the country.