· For every week of 2014, more than €2.3 million will be invested in arts, culture and film
· Additional funding of €17 million announced for Limerick National City of Culture, for Decade of Centenaries 1912 - 1922, and for works on heritage buildings
· Provision made for restoration of historic National Gallery of Ireland to proceed
· Jobs boost from capital projects and from heritage building restoration
· Bringing forward new regime for film tax relief to 2015 is welcome, as is extending reliefs to non-EU talent
Tuesday, October 15th - Jimmy Deenihan TD, Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, has outlined the funding that will be made available from his Department for the support and promotion of arts, culture, film and heritage for 2014. Minister Deenihan has also welcomed a number of new funding initiatives which will provide significant support for the Limerick National City of Culture 2014, for the Decade of Centenaries 1912 - 1922, and for Heritage Buildings at Risk.
Departmental funding: Funding from the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht for 2014 will include:
· Almost €123 million for Arts, Culture and Film, including almost €56m for the Arts Council and €14 million for the Irish Film Board;
· Almost €45 million for the conservation and protection of Ireland’s built and natural heritage;
· Almost €40 million for the Irish Language, the Gaeltacht and the Islands; and,
· Over €38 million for North-South Co-Operation, including support for two North-South implementation bodies - Waterways Ireland and An Foras Teanga.
Whilst there has been a reduction of approximately €16.9 million (7%) in exchequer funding to the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht for 2014, this has been offset by new funding for three jobs-rich initiatives totalling €17 million. These projects are to be funded from the National Lottery licence transaction, and include:
· €6 million for the Limerick National City of Culture 2014 - Limerick is the inaugural National City of Culture, a new designation which a city will hold for one calendar year, as announced by Minister Deenihan in 2012;
· €6 million for projects relating to the Decade of Centenaries 1912 - 1922 - this is to fund a number of projects including works at the GPO; and,
· €5 million for the Traditional Skills and Buildings at Risk Jobs Leverage Scheme 2014 - this will be directed at renovation projects for buildings which are protected.
Minister Deenihan commented:
On Budget 2014: "Just like in every Department, I have had to make difficult choices when it comes to 2014. However, this budget is a really important step to strengthening our economy, exiting the bailout and creating jobs."
On new additional funding: "The new funding of €17 million announced today is very significant. It will allow the inaugural Limerick National City of Culture 2014, which I announced last year, to put on an amazing array of events. It will allow us to move ahead with major building projects to mark the centenary of the 1916 Rising. And, it will give allow for urgent repairs on heritage buildings the length and breadth of the country to take place.
On jobs: "I have made provision for the refurbishment of the historic wings of the National Gallery of Ireland to proceed as planned. This will create approximately 270 high end construction jobs, many of which are specialist, over the timeline of the project.
"The new funding of €17 million will also deliver new jobs in a range of areas including in heritage building restoration, and in the construction sector arising from capital projects to mark the 1916 Rising. The funding will also support jobs in the arts and in cultural tourism in Limerick which will be Ireland's first National City of Culture next year."
On funding to the arts and film: "Even with a reduced Departmental budget, every week more than €2.3 million will be invested in arts, culture and film next year. Well over half of this - €70 million - will go to the Arts Council and the Film Board. This will help to maintain and support the important role the arts play in innovation and expression as well as job creation and economic recovery."
On the cultural institutions: "The national cultural institutions attract 2.75 million visitors a year. I have taken that into account by allocating as much as possible to the National Museum and National Library, and holding allocations steady to the National Archives. I want to enable institutions to maintain services to the public over the course of 2014, and I have therefore prioritised these national institutions over some international events for next year."
On film: "I welcome the announcement by Minister Noonan that he intends to bring forward the new regime for film tax reliefs to 2015, and also extend the definition of 'eligible individual' in the scheme for film relief to include non-EU talent. This will increase the attractiveness of Ireland as a destination for film investment."
On Living City: Minister Deenihan also welcomed the decision to extend the living city initiative to Cork, Galway, Kilkenny and Dublin, for all buildings built prior to 1915.
“This incentive targets Ireland’s historic building stock. It’s a tangible example of Government commitment to sustainable development – so that we don’t repeat the mistakes of the past - and it focuses on our existing urban core. This scheme, which complements the new investment scheme in the Traditional Skills and Buildings at Risk Jobs Leverage Scheme, will ensure that Ireland’s major urban cities are enhanced, continue to have vibrant city centres, and encourage increased tourism and direct inward investment.”