Paula Butterly (Louth, Fine Gael)
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235. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht to respond to correspondence received (details supplied) in relation to the basic income for the arts pilot programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16475/25]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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Thank you for your question and the inclusion of correspondence from a Basic Income for the Arts (BIA) recipient which was also sent to me earlier this week, and which my office will reply to directly also.

The Programme for Government commits to assessing the BIA pilot research scheme to maximise its impact. The Basic Income for the Arts pilot research scheme will conclude in August 2025 and the data from the pilot will feed into Government consideration of the next steps. Recipients have been receiving payment and responding to surveys under the scheme since August 2022.

In Budget 2025, Government made an allocation of €35 million for the Basic Income for the Arts in 2025. It is important to note that the pilot is a research programme and that no decision has been taken as to the continuation of BIA, and that the research evaluating the impact of the pilot scheme is ongoing.

While the research phase of the pilot scheme is still ongoing, it is clear from evidence collected to date under the scheme that it is having a positive impact on participants. The latest data is available through published reports on the Basic Income for the Arts website on Gov.ie.

This data shows that the BIA payment is having a consistent, positive impact across almost all indicators - affecting practice development, sectoral retention, well-being, and deprivation. Artists in receipt of the support are typically able to devote more time to their art, experience a boost to their wellbeing through greater life satisfaction and reduced anxiety, and are protected from the precariousness of incomes in the sector to a greater degree than those who are not receiving the support.

A Government decision will be required on a successor scheme to the pilot, and the future of the BIA will be decided when the final results of the research are available which will provide the Government with the evidence base upon which to base future policy decisions about the Basic Income for the Arts.