Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 June 2026
400. Deputy John Connolly asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport whether a company (details supplied) continues to benefit from funding provided by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47776/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra401. Deputy John Connolly asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the level of funding provided by his Department to a company (details supplied) in each of the years 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025; the organ or precise source within his Department that provided the funding; the purpose of the funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47777/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra402. Deputy John Connolly asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport if his Department has a direct role in the Governance structure of a company (details supplied) or in the general governance or oversight of the company; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47778/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra403. Deputy John Connolly asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport if a company (details supplied) shared their intention to expend €1 million resourced by his Department on projects that mark the legacy of Galway European Capital of Culture 2020; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47779/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra404. Deputy John Connolly asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport if a company (details supplied) shared with his Department any proposal for change of the ownership structure of governance structure of the company; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47780/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 400, 401, 402, 403 and 404 together.
Galway’s designation as European Capital of Culture for 2020 provided an opportunity to strengthen and promote our culture nationally and internationally. Departmental support of €15million was included by Government in Project Ireland 2040. Government funding was provided in two stages; €14million to support the delivery of the cultural programme of the Galway 2020 European Capital of Culture (of which the final drawdown completed in November 2020); and €1million to support its’ Legacy Programme.
The final drawdown of the €1 million funding under the Galway European Capital of Culture Legacy Programme was paid to Galway Culture Company on 17th July 2024. As requested, please find below the amount of funding provided in each of the years 2022 -25 under the legacy programme:
|
Year |
Dept. Funding |
|
2022 |
€0 |
|
2023 |
€797,832.15 |
|
2024 |
€202,167.85 |
|
2025 |
€0 |
In line with the Performance Delivery Agreement (PDA) between my Department and Galway Culture Company, monitoring and evaluation requirements included an external evaluation of the programme and an independent auditor’s review, as well as regular monitoring meetings. The PDA also set out the key performance indicators and grant drawdown requirements for the programme.
I received the final reporting on the programme in June 2025 and welcomed the analysis made by the independent evaluators, the Audience Agency, that Galway Culture Company;
“delivered a successful programme using a budget of €1m, in an effective and efficient way, demonstrating transparency in the way this has been administered and meeting its obligations as stated in the Performance Delivery Agreement with the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.”
The final analysis of the spending found that the budget of €1m legacy funding was allocated as follows:
• €191,920 under strategic objective 1, which aimed to ‘To facilitate international and EU relationships and funding’
• €537,413 under strategic objective 2, ‘To support place based cultural programming’
• €270,668 under strategic objective 3, ‘To provide supports to the cultural and creative sector’
In line with the Performance Delivery Agreements, the Department also received quarterly management accounts and independent auditor’s reports from Galway 2020 related to the Departmental funding. The final independent auditor’s report covering the programme noted that Galway 2020 followed best practice in transparency, accountability and secured value for money.
Galway Culture Company informed the Department at a meeting on 30 May 2025, that it was in discussion with the local authorities and various partners on the future of the company following completion of all actions associated with the European Capital of Culture.
I would note that any future role for Galway Culture Company, or proposals to change its ownership structure, would be a matter for GCC and would be entirely independent of the work which was previously supported by this Department through the Performance Delivery Agreement above. Following the completion of the legacy programme, this Department has no active funding relationship with Galway Culture Company, and no further allocation of funding is currently planned.
