Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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178. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if she will outline the work that is being carried out by her Department to ensure that County Louth is better represented in plans for marking St. Bridget’s Day 2025; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45384/24]

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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Since it was first observed in 2023, the public holiday to celebrate Imbolc/St Bridget’s Day, the Saint or goddess Bridget and the ancient spring festival has become the first Irish public holiday to be named after a woman.

The ancient traditional festival of Imbolc marks the half-way point between the winter solstice and the equinox, the beginning of spring and the Celtic New Year. Its inclusion as a public holiday means that all four of the traditional Celtic seasonal festival are now public holidays – along with Bealtaine in May, Lúnasa in August, and Samhain or Halloween in October.

St Bridget’s Day is traditionally the celebration of one of Ireland’s three patron saints and I welcome and encourage how it has been taken as an opportunity to celebrate all Irish women. St Bridget’s Day 2025, is of particular significance as many recognise it as the 1500th anniversary of her death.

The significance that we take from this public holiday can be personal to us all and can vary between communities and counties. My Department has been able to support numerous local authorities as they develop their own St Bridget’s Day initiatives specific to their locality. Local authorities have always been key stakeholders with an understanding of local context and the initiatives that will best serve and engage their communities.

I am including below details of specific funding avenues that my Department has supported through the Creative Ireland Programme and the Cultural Institutions and Commemorations Unit. These funding avenues will be available again next year. If the Deputy is aware of any specific local plans or proposals in this regard, it may be helpful to highlight the supports available through my Department.

Creative Ireland Programme 2023-2027, this all-of Government Programme, led by my Department, seeks to enable each citizen to realise their full creative potential. Under its Creative Communities initiative, annual funding is provided to all local authorities to enable them to implement their individual Culture and Creativity Strategies for the period 2023-2027.

Since 2021, this funding has enabled specific St. Bridget projects to be brought forward by the Culture and Creativity teams in several counties, including Louth. My Department and the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage will continue to allocate funding to support local authority implementation of their individual Culture and Creativity Strategies during 2025, subject to budgetary considerations.

The Louth County Council Culture and Creativity Strategy 2023-2027, has identified a strategic priority - Promoting a sense of place and identity. Within that priority Louth County Council Culture and Creativity team commissioned a year-long Artist in the Community Project that culminated with 5 artists working with a number of community groups and schools on various ‘Bridget’ themed projects in the 2024 festival.

This year I have also approved a grant funding allocation for every local authority to support community-led commemorative initiatives to mark locally significant historical events and themes. This Commemoration funding allocation is administered through my Department’s Culture Institutions and Commemorations Unit.

The Arts Council’s Festivals Investment scheme is also currently accepting proposals for multi-disciplinary festivals and single art form festivals taking place between 1 July and 31 December 2025, and is specifically designed to offer support to local/voluntary organisations to develop arts festivals.

In relation to the tourism aspect, Fáilte Ireland assisted Louth Co Council in getting the relevant new Discover Ireland listing up and running, with details of Saint Brigid’s Shrine and Well in Faughart. They also shared information of the events received from Louth County Council with their International publicity team and they were supported through their social media channels. Since 2018, Tourism Ireland has supported Irish Embassies and Consulates around the world in marking St. Brigid's Day by celebrating the creativity of women through a broad programme of events. This year, Tourism Ireland is encouraging regional spread and building on seasonal landmark moments, which includes the promotion of specific programmes including St Brigid’s Day.

In relation to other tourism events and promotion planned for St Brigid’s day 2025, this is primarily an operational matter for the tourism agencies, Tourism Ireland and Fáilte Ireland.