Press release
Ministers Martin and Chambers reflect on 2021 as pandemic supports continue
From Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media
Published on
Last updated on
The Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Catherine Martin TD and Minister of State for Sport and the Gaeltacht, Jack Chambers TD have reiterated that key sectors will continue to be supported as 2021 draws to a close, and as we transition through the current phase of the pandemic.
Reflecting on what was a difficult year for many, Ministers Martin and Chambers outlined key funding and supportive measures that have sustained sectors under their remit throughout 2021;
Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Catherine Martin said:
“I am committed to supporting our much-valued sectors of Tourism, Culture, An Gaeltacht, Sport, Media and the Arts, as we manage the fluid and unpredictable situation we find ourselves in. We have implemented targeted supports to enable our sectors to survive, and also to ensure they are well-placed for recovery.
“Environmental sustainability will be a core component of this recovery. This year we committed to an ambitious programme of Climate Actions under the Climate Action Plan that reflects the critical role my Department will play in ensuring that the transition to a lower carbon economy fosters creativity, expands the possibilities for people in Ireland to engage with nature through sustainable sport and tourism policies, and guarantees that sustainable development is prioritised in the Gaeltacht.
“Tourism is a hugely significant economic sector in Ireland, bringing jobs and revenue to all parts of the country. In Budget 2022, €50m was allocated for Tourism Business Continuity Supports, assisting business’ survival and recovery while €35m was allocated to enhanced Tourism Marketing to accelerate the return of International Tourism to Ireland. I commend the efforts of our Tourism bodies in these challenging times, and look forward to working with them to establish a path to recovery for the industry.
“Culture and the Arts are a fundamental expression of who we are as a nation. We all want to see a return to full capacities attending cultural and entertainment events and the rehabilitation of our hard-hit Night-Time Economy, but the twists and turns of this pandemic continue to pose challenges Our commitment to the sector is evidenced by recent funding allocations, among them €25m to pilot a Basic Income Scheme for Artists; record Arts Council funding of €130m and the recent announcement of a €50 million funding package for the Live Performance Sector.
“With regard to our Media sector, we are working on the development of the legislative and regulatory framework for broadcasting and media in Ireland. To support this, in Budget 2022, €5.5m was allocated to establish the new Media Commission, including an Online Safety Commissioner. An Taoiseach and I are carefully considering the contents of the wide-ranging Report of the Future of Media Commission presented to us earlier this year. The Report will provide a basis for media and broadcasting policy in the coming years.
“I am also pleased to have secured a package of capital investment of over €1bn over the period 2021 to 2025 as part of the revised National Development Plan. This investment will support economic recovery and resilience in the Tourism, Arts, Culture, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media sectors, while also enhancing individual and community wellbeing; advancing social, economic and environmental sustainability; and protecting our unique cultural, linguistic and sporting heritage for generations to come.”
Concluding, Minister Martin said:
“The challenges facing our sectors are unprecedented. I will continue to work towards their recovery, and look forward to brighter days ahead.”
Minister of State for Sport and the Gaeltacht, Jack Chambers said:
“Sport is crucial to our wellbeing, both physically and mentally. As with other areas under the remit of the Department, we are guided by the principles of participation and equality. Sport helps to bring our communities alive and gives us a sense of identity, place and belonging. Earlier this year, the success of our Irish athletes at the Tokyo Olympics lifted the nation and reaffirmed that the future of Irish sport is bright.
“We are committed to supporting the development of sports participation in this country. In Budget 2022, Sport Ireland was allocated €105.81m to support development and participation all over Ireland, while the recent announcement of almost €80m in funding for the sector will assist organisations to recover and grow post-pandemic. We will continue to work closely with our sporting bodies to support clubs and communities, big and small, across Ireland and we look forward with optimism to 2022.
“A key mission of this Department is to support the Irish language- to strengthen its use as the principal community language of An Gaeltacht and the development of the language in the digital age. Budget 2022 agreed an additional €7m package for the Irish Language plus €4.2m extra for Irish language broadcasting. In addition, the Official Languages Bill has now passed into law, which will bring about positive and important change. This legislation will empower Irish speakers and encourage more people to learn and embrace the language. As Minister of State, I want to thank the Irish language community for supporting this legislation and I look forward to it benefitting our Gaeltacht communities and enriching our society as a whole.”
Minister Martin and Minister Chambers recognise the unique challenges faced by the sectors under the remit of the Department. Below are some of the measures introduced throughout the course of 2021 to underpin and support those sectors, along with a summary of the major announcements made by the Department.
TOURISM
• €20m Outdoor Dining Enhancement Scheme (including bars and pubs)
• €50m Tourism Business Continuity Scheme Supports announced in Budget 2022
• Recovery Oversight Group publishes three reports (February, May and September 2021)
• €73m to develop four new world-class tourist attractions
• €19m to develop state-of-the-art facilities for outdoor water-based activities
• Package of capital investment in the National Development Plan 2021-2030 to transition to a sustainable tourism model, deliver enhanced amenities and grow tourism in rural communities
• Pilot €5 million Urban Animation Capital Investment Scheme
• Sustainable Tourism Working Group publishes its report outlining a suite of actions to promote sustainable tourism practices in Ireland
• Record level of funding for tourism in Budget 2022 - €288.5m overall
• €1.7m investment in Fáilte Ireland’s Dublin Surprising Stories Scheme
SPORT
• Pilot events: In preparation for easing of restrictions, a select number of pilot events took place to inform guidance for venues reopening
• Guidelines published to support safe return of spectators to events
• A new round of the Sports Capital and Equipment Programme closed on the 1st March and by the deadline a record 3,106 applications were received
• Work is advancing on projects under Large Scale Sport Infrastructure Fund
• €5.9m Dormant Accounts Funding for sport and physical activity measures
• A new High Performance Strategy for sporting sector launched
• Levelling the field for male and female Gaelic Games players – for the first time ever, the State will provide equal per head support funding to inter county players ending the discrepancy between male and female players
• €4m investment in Sport Ireland’s Women in Sport Programme over 2021 and 2022
• Irish Olympic and Paralympic athletes compete and win medals in Tokyo
• €16.6m provided for sports equipment under the Sports Capital and Equipment Programme
• Package of capital investment in the National Development Plan 2021-2030 to provide sports facilities and major sporting infrastructure development
• Budget 2022 package including €105.81m for Sport Ireland and significant additional grants under the Sports Capital and Equipment Programme
• Publication of Sports Action Plan 2021-2023
• €78.9 million funding boost for sport sector - €73.6m to help sports organisations to recover and grow post pandemic, and €5.3m for sports equipment
ARTS AND CULTURE
• Launch of the Music and Entertainment Business Assistance Scheme
• Launch of Mná 100 podcast series
• Launch of 2021 Programme for the Decade of Centenaries 2012-2023
• Markievicz Award recipients for 2021
• Artists-in-Residence under the Decade of Centenaries Programme
• Launch of Cruinniú na nÓg 2021
• €455,000 funding for the promotion of Irish arts globally
• Recipients of €25 million funding under Live Performance Support Scheme announced
• Launch of the Events Sector Covid Support Scheme (ESCSS) in conjunction with the Tánaiste
• Minister Martin announces funding for €230,00 for the expansion of the Minding Creative Minds support service to the Irish creative sector
• Announcement of ‘Protecting the public record: models of international best practice’ online seminar
• Máirtín Ó Cadhain’s dictionary published online for the first time
• €300,000 in funding for local and regional museums
• Launch of the EU Creative Europe Programme (2021-2027 )
• Funding of €96,391 for 28 events to support small scale local festivals and summer schools
• Senator David Norris visits the National Archives to view records relating to his landmark case in 1988 at the European Court of Human Rights
• €147,000 in funding for cross-border cultural projects
• €29 million Crawford Art Gallery redevelopment
• €560,000 fund to promote Irish arts globally
• €2 million Creative Climate Action fund
• State recognition of key practices of Ireland’s living cultural heritage
• Grants of over €1.46m to eleven arts and culture organisations
• Appointment of Chair and new members to the Board of the National Library of Ireland
• New members appointed to the Culture Ireland Expert Advisory Committee
• ‘Poetry as Commemoration’ launch
• Appointment of Chair and new members to the Board of the Screen Ireland
• New and enhanced supports for creativity in schools
• New creative projects to support young people
• Six new members to the Board of the Irish Manuscripts Commission
• Programme of events to mark the centenary of the Anglo-Irish Treaty
• Acquisition of Edna O’Brien’s papers by the National Library of Ireland
• National Archives 2021 Commemoration Programme of Events
• Minister Martin visits Irish Arts Centre in New York
• ‘Treaty 1921 – Records from the Archives’ exhibition opens in London
• Diaries of Michael Collins presented to the State
• €2 million to support the promotion of Irish arts globally
• The Treaty 1921 – Records from the Archives exhibition opens at Dublin Castle
• €50 million funding package for the Live Performance Sector
• €10m Local Live Performance Programming Scheme (LLPPS) - €5m Phase 1 (summer programming) and €5m Phase 2 (winter programming)
MEDIA
• Minister Martin attends the Council of Europe Conference of Ministers, responsible for Media and Information Society
• Minister Martin launches comprehensive online safety report on internet use by children and adults
• Online Safety and Media Regulation Bill – Minister Catherine Martin proposes additional measures to assist community broadcasters, public service media and the radio sector
• Minister Martin welcomes support for the Live Music Sector in new BAI funding round
• Minister Catherine Martin welcomes €7.2m in new funding for Irish TV and radio
• Minister Catherine Martin welcomes support for the Independent Commercial Radio Sector in new BAI funding round
GAELTACHT
• €530,000 granted to Techspace 2021 to help young people create digital content in the Irish language
• Language Plans were approved and launched across the country by Minister of State Jack Chambers - Bearna & Cnoc na Cathrach, Galway City, East Galway City, An Ghaeltacht Láir, An Clochán Liath, Cléire, West Mayo, (approved); Ennis, Árainn Mhór, Letterkenny, Ceantar na nOileán, Na Rosann, North Donegal (launched); Gaeltacht Service Towns notices were published for Clifden and Ballinrobe
• Language Plans were approved and launched across the country by Minister of State Jack Chambers (East Galway City, Árainn Mhór , Connemara Cape Clear Island, Ennis, Clifden and Ballinrobe, Ceantar na nOileán, North Donegal, West Mayo)
• Ten graduates appointed to Irish language internship scheme in European Union Institutions (info)
• €1.6m approved for Tuismitheoirí na Gaeltachta to support families raising their children through Irish
• Language planning fund of €3.46m for Údarás na Gaeltachta and Foras na Gaeilge
• Máirtín Ó Cadhain’s Dictionary published online which gives us an insight into rich Irish language of Galway
• 32 amendments to strengthen the Official Languages (Amendment) Bill approved
• €240,000 stabilisation fund for Gaeltacht community halls
• €150,000 for Na Gaeil Óga - an all-Irish GAA Club in Dublin
• €3m fund for Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge (NUIG) to provide higher education through medium of Irish language
• National Development Plan 2021-2030 investment in Gaeltacht job creation, development of tourist attractions and promotion of use of Irish language throughout the country
• Tech Féile Awards 2021 - gives young people an opportunity to be creative in the digital world of the Irish language
• Budget 2022 - over €85.6m funding allocation for Gaeltacht and Irish language sector and total funding of €33.3m for Údarás na Gaeltachta
• €1.7m fund for Irish language colleges in the Gaeltacht; approval granted for colleges to organise short courses between now and summer 2022
• Second annual progress report on the government’s Action Plan for the Irish Language 2018-2022
AN GHAELTACHT
• €530,000 ceadaithe do Techspace 2021 a chabhraíonn le hógánaigh le cruthú ábhair dhigitigh trí mheán na Gaeilge
• Pleananna Teanga ceadaithe agus seolta ar fud na tíre ag an Aire Stáit Jack Chambers - Bearna & Cnoc na Cathrach, Cathair na Gaillimhe, Oirthear Chathair na Gaillimhe, An Ghaeltacht Láir, An Clochán Liath, Cléire, Maigh Eo Thiar (ceadaithe); Inis, Árainn Mhór, Leitir Ceanainn, Ceantar na nOileán, Na Rosann, Tuaisceart Dhún na nGall (seolta); eisíodh fógra Bailte Seirbhíse Gaeltachta i leith An Clochán agus Baile an Róba
• Deichniúr céimithe ceapaithe do Scéim Intéirneachta Gaeilge in Institiúidí an Aontais Eorpaigh 2021
• 1.6m ceadaithe do Thuismitheoirí na Gaeltachta chun tacú le teaghlaigh atá ag tógáil a bpáistí le Gaeilge
• Ciste pleanála teanga €3.46m d’Údarás na Gaeltachta agus d’Foras na Gaeilge
• Foclóir Mháirtín Uí Chadhain foilsithe ar líne a thugann léargas dúinn ar Ghaeilge shaibhir na Gaillimhe
• 32 leasú ceadaithe chun Bille na dTeangacha Oifigiúla (Leasú) a neartú
• Ciste cobhsaithe €240,000 do hallaí pobail na Gaeltachta
• €150,000 do na Gaeil Óga- club CLG lán- Ghaeilge i mBaile Átha Cliath
• Ciste €3m d’Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge (OÉG) chun Ardoideachas a chur ar fáil trí mheán na Gaeilge
• Plean Forbartha Náisiúnta 2021- 2030 infheistíocht i gcruthú post na Gaeltachta, forbairt d’áiteanna turasóireachta agus cur chun cinn úsáide na Gaeilge ar fud na tíre
• Gradaim TechFéile 2021 a thugann deis don aos óg a bheith cruthaitheach i saol digiteach na Gaeilge
• Buiséid 2022 - leithroinnt breis is €85.6m d'earnáil na Gaeltachta agus na Gaeilge agus maoiniú iomlán €33.3m d'Údarás na Gaeltachta
• Ciste €1.7m do choláistí samhraidh sa Ghaeltacht; cead tugtha do choláistí gearrchúrsaí a eagrú idir seo agus samhradh 2022
• An dara tuairisc bhliantúil ar dhul chun cinn Phlean Gníomhaíochta an Rialtais don Ghaeilge 2018-2022