Violet-Anne Wynne (Clare, Independent)
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185. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if she will extend a scheme (details supplied) for new applications; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20383/23]

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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Over 9,000 people applied for the Basic Income for the Arts Pilot Scheme (BIA) last year, of which, just over 8,200 were deemed eligible. The BIA is a Pilot Research Scheme which will run for a three-year period 2022 - 2025.

The scheme is a pilot and is operating with funding for a maximum of 2,000 recipients of the payment who are receiving payment of €325 per week. 1,000 Control Group members are also participating in the research. As analysis of the results of participant surveys will involve a comparison of averages between the two groups, it is intended that participants selected in 2022 remain on the scheme for the full three years. It is not intended to invite new applications.

There were over 8,200 eligible applicants for the scheme, 2,000 of whom were chosen for payment through an anonymised random selection process. The selection process was overseen by EY acting as an independent verifier.

This pilot is a three-year research programme with the intention of providing an evidence base to assess whether or not this type of support works for the arts. The research involved will inform future Government policy in the arts and has the potential to change the landscape of the arts in Ireland and how we fund it.

The research will be looking at many different types of impact data from participants including the effect the payment has on their creativity, the amount of time they devote to the arts, their wellbeing, and their ability to earn additional income from the arts. The research can be followed on www.gov.ie/basicincomearts

Violet-Anne Wynne (Clare, Independent)
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186. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if she will report on the success of a pilot scheme (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20384/23]

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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The Basic Income for the Arts (BIA) pilot was a key priority for me as Minister with responsibility for arts and culture. I see this scheme as an important intervention to support the arts sector recover after the devastation wreaked by the Covid pandemic. Covid highlighted both the precarious nature of working in the arts and the importance of the arts for us all.

The pilot was also the number one recommendation of the Arts and Culture Recovery Taskforce which I established in 2020 to examine ways in which to help the arts recover post pandemic. I was very pleased to have been able to deliver on this recommendation. Payments on the scheme have been ongoing to recipients since the end of October 2022.

The pilot scheme includes a research programme which will examine, over a three-year period, the impact of a basic income style payment on artists and creative arts workers. As such, evaluation will be continuous, including through a longitudinal study which will see participants surveyed every six months. The data gathered as part of the research will provide an evidence base around the impact of the policy.

The scheme is a randomised control trial which consists of two groups of randomly selected people. One will receive the basic income – the treatment group, while the other, – the control group, will not receive the BIA. Analysis of the results will involve a comparison of averages between the two groups. As the groups have the same characteristics at baseline and are large enough to be a statistically representative sample, any difference arising during the trial can be assumed to have been caused by the policy.

The research project is being undertaken by a group of economists and policy analysts who are all members of IGEES (the Irish Government Economic and Evaluation Service). In addition, the ESRI and IGESS will provide peer review support around methodology and research papers being produced as part of the project. Data collected will be made available to independent researchers should they wish to do their own research on related topics of interest.