A NEW REPORT on the economic impact of the arts in Ireland shows the sector provide “significant direct and indirect employment” in Ireland – with the Arts Council’s annual funding from the Exchequer supporting some 2,270 jobs.
The employment supported by the Council generates an annual turnover of €184 million, with tax revenues to the Irish Exchequer of €42 million, according to Assessment of the Economic Impact of the Arts in Ireland report, published by the state agency which funds and develops the arts in Ireland.
The 2012 report, commissioned by the Council from Indecon International Economic Consultants, represents an update on the firm’s previous independent evaluation of the economic impact of the arts in Ireland (2009). The new report focuses on the impact of the arts in Ireland over the year 2011, and concludes that “the arts continue to be a major employer and contributor to Irish economic output.”
The turnover reported by organisations supported by the Arts Council determines their ability to purchase goods and services, to employ staff and to undertake programmes of investment – functions which in turn have an impact on the wider economy.
The Arts Council committed €60 million in funding to organisations and individuals 2011, creating an estimated turnover of €145 million.
Meanwhile, the Arts Council’s own grant-in-aid has been reduced by €22 million (25 per cent) between 2008 and 2012 – and the report notes ‘very significant job losses’ since the 2009 report.
“This report shows that the arts are a major employer and contributor to economic output, and that with smart investment the arts are capable of stimulating more job creation and economic activity at a time we need it most,” said the Chairman of the Arts Council, Pat Moylan.
“The arts really matter to us in Ireland, they unite our communities in good times and in bad, and they help define us as a people. Our achievements in the arts give us a deep credibility when we tell the world of our flexible, creative, innovative work force, and the Arts Council is proud of the role the arts play in attracting inward investment,” Moylan added.
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