Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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108. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if he will actively support the Irish Chamber Orchestra, which needs funding in 2014. [16983/14]

Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North-West Limerick, Fine Gael)
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My Department does not provide operating grants as described by the Deputy. That is matter for the Arts Council, which is statutorily independent in its decision making. In general terms, responsibility for the promotion of the arts at all levels throughout the country is primarily devolved to the Arts Council. The Arts Council is the principal agency through which State funding is channelled to the arts. Under the Arts Act 2003, the Arts Council is a statutorily independent body, funded by my Department and independent in its day-to-day operations, and I have no role to play in relation to its funding decisions in this and other matters.

It may interest the Deputy to know that my Department provided €2.6 million in capital funding to the Irish Chamber Orchestra towards the construction of new headquarters and rehearsal studios at the University of Limerick, which was opened in 2008.