The Arts Council is asking the Government for an additional €20 million in 2008, to bring its funding to €100 million for the first time and enable the Arts Council to focus on the development of a number of key areas identified in consultation with arts organisations around the country. Olive Braiden, Chair of the Arts Council, says that the additional €20 million would be an excellent investment and would stabilise the arts sector in Ireland for the first time ever.

"We need the additional funding to provide more opportunities for our increasing and ever more diverse population, and most especially for our young people to participate in the arts. We need to create more opportunities for the new arts centres and venues dotted around the country to present a wide variety of work, and to extend the Council’s very successful touring programme by allowing regional arts organisations bring shows and exhibitions to Dublin, an initiative which has been hampered until now by high costs", says Olive Braiden.

http://www.artscouncil.ie/en/media.aspx?article=3e8ea2a5-70ce-44c1-b49f-250f6e3da40c