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Minister Humphreys welcomes additional funding allocation of €5m for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht
The Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys TD, has today (Thursday) announced that she has secured an additional €5 million in funding for her Department in 2016. It brings the total 2016 allocation for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht to over €315 million - an increase of almost 14% on the 2015 allocation.
The additional funding breaks down as follows:
· €2 million for the new Mary Robinson Centre, Ballina
· An additional €1 million for the Arts Council for 2016
· An additional €1 million for Údarás na Gaeltachta
· A €500,000 boost for the Irish Film Board, soon to be Screen Ireland
· An extra €500,000 in support for the Heritage Council
Speaking today Minister Humphreys said:
“This funding, secured as part of the 2016 Revised Estimates, will allow for additional support for a number of key areas under my Department. I am particularly pleased that, thanks to the economic recovery, we are now in a position to support delivery of Ireland's first ever Presidential Library, The Mary Robinson Centre.
“A number of bodies under my Department's aegis, namely the Arts Council, Údarás na Gaeltachta, the Heritage Council and the Irish Film Board, will greatly benefit from these increased allocations in 2016.
“The additional funding for the Arts Council will allow them to enhance support to arts organisations around the country on both a small and large scale, further demonstrating the importance attached to supporting our widely recognised artistic and cultural strengths.
The increased 2016 allocation for the Heritage Council will safeguard and enhance the delivery of its wide range of programmes including the funding of Heritage Officers, Heritage Week, Heritage in Schools, the Discovery Programme, the Irish Landmark Trust, the Irish Walled Towns Network and the community grants programme.
“In the week of the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, I am very pleased to be announcing increased support for the Irish Film Board. This increased investment will maximise the benefits brought about by the increase in the cap on eligible expenditure for the Section 481 film tax credit to €70 millon, as announced as part of Budget 2016.”