merrion street

The Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys TD, has today (Monday) said that her Department is focussing on a range of sectors and initiatives to help boost job creation as part of the Action Plan for Jobs 2016, including investment in major cultural infrastructure projects; expanding the film and TV sector; supporting employment in the Gaeltacht; and the development of a range of heritage tourism initiatives.

Key Departmental actions in the APJ 2016 include:
Investment in cultural heritage projects as part of the Ireland 2016 Centenary Programme, including a new visitor centre at the GPO; restoration of Nos 14-17 Moore Street; new visitor facilities at Teach an Phiarsaigh, Ros Muc
Cultural infrastructure projects at the National Archives, the National Gallery and the National Library
Creating up to 1,000 new jobs in the film and audio visual sector, by supporting up to 32 projects and addressing skills needs in the sector
Supporting the creation of 500 new jobs in the Gaeltacht
Supporting Irish artists and arts organisations at home and abroad
Enhancing genealogy tourism through ongoing development of cultural digitisation initiatives
The roll out of the Built Heritage Investment Scheme to support local heritage projects

Speaking today Minister Humphreys said:
“Our language, culture and heritage contribute enormously to making Ireland an attractive place to live in, to invest in and to visit. The economic recovery will allow for increased investment in the arts, heritage and Gaeltacht sectors in the year ahead and my Department will contribute to job creation across a range of sectors in 2016, including tourism, the arts and the audio visual sector.

“The 2016 Action Plan for Jobs includes commitments to promote Irish art and artists worldwide and to support a wide range of arts venues, festivals, arts organisations and touring initiatives around Ireland. We will continue to support digitisation projects, which will be a boost to genealogy tourism as more and more people seek to explore their Irish roots.

“The recent success of the Irish film industry has underlined the importance of Government support for the sector. My Department is increasing funding for the Irish Film Board this year, which will allow for up to 32 film and TV projects to be supported. We want to help increase jobs in the audio visual sector by up to 1,000.

“The Government will invest in a range of major cultural infrastructure projects in the year ahead. This includes the heritage projects being developed as part of Ireland 2016, such as the new visitor centres at the GPO and Teach an Phiarsaigh, and the new Tenement Museum. Other major projects include the refurbishment at the National Gallery, the expansion of the National Archives and the development of the Cork Events Centre.

“Investing in our culture, language and heritage is not just good for society, is it good for the economy. My Department will make a significant contribution to job creation in the year ahead by boosting tourism, generating employment in the construction and heritage sectors, supporting artists and arts organisations and investing in our audio visual sector.”

ENDS

Note for Editors:

Summary of DAHG elements in the Action Plan for Jobs – 2016

Stimulating regional growth
Supporting job creation and maintenance in the Gaeltacht – 2.2.8
500 new jobs;
supports for post-research/pre-commercialisation units and community development initiatives;
supports to maintain 7,000 existing jobs in the Gaeltacht
Develop advanced property solutions for innovative companies seeking to move from the incubator phase to market job creation and maintenance in the Gaeltacht – 2.2.9

Tourism
Promote Irish art and artists worldwide – 7.3.8
Support up to 300 individuals and over 500 organisations across a wide range of arts venues, festivals, arts organisations and touring initiatives around Ireland in 2016 – 7.3.9
Continue to develop cultural digitisation initiatives in order to enhance Ireland's roots tourism offering – 7.3.10
Develop further heritage tourism initiatives:
trailway development in National Parks and Nature Reserves, in partnership with key stakeholders.
Ensure National Parks, Nature Reserves, National Monuments and historic buildings contribute as experiences along the Wild Atlantic Way – 7.3.11
Support a range of projects that apply good heritage practice to the management of places, collections or objects (including buildings) through the Heritage Management Grant Scheme 2016 – 7.3.12
Rollout a Built Heritage Investment Scheme to encourage investment in a large number of small-scale, labour-intensive projects across Ireland – 7.3.13
Ireland 2016 capital investment Programme – 7.3.14
Invest in construction/refurbishment works at the National Library, the National Archives, Cork Event Centre and in regional arts and cultural centres nationwide – 7.3.15

Film & audio-visual
Work with the Irish Film Board and other agencies to expand the industry. Up to 32 projects will be supported, including feature documentaries, animation, TV drama and short films – 11.3.1
Increase fulltime employment equivalents in the film and audio-visual sector up to 1,000 jobs
fund at least 15-20 Irish feature films
develop creative co-production feature film opportunities for 5-10 creative co-productions,
Commission an economic analysis of the current value of the audio visual industry in Ireland, to assess the scale, strengths and contribution of the sector in terms of economic activity and employment levels and its potential to expand further – 11.3.2
Publish and implement the joint IFB/BAI national strategy on skills shortages and talent development – 11.3.3