CATHERINE MARTIN, the Irish Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, was in London this week to meet with UK parliamentarians and union representatives.
Minister Martin was invited to speak to the Performers’ Alliance All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) in Westminster about the ground-breaking Irish Basic Income for the Arts scheme (BIA), an innovative pilot scheme which has the potential to transform how the arts is funded in Ireland.
The APPG examines issues affecting performers in the arts throughout the UK and minimum income guarantees for performers is an issue the group are currently considering.
It was in this context that the APPG invited Minister Martin to speak to about the BIA scheme and any learnings from the Irish pilot that could be useful for the UK.
Minister Catherine Martin addresses MPs in WestminsterMinister Martin said: “I was very pleased to be invited to speak to the Performers’ Alliance All-Party Parliamentary Group about the delivery of the Basic Income for the Arts, which has been a key priority for me.
“This pilot scheme will research the impact of a basic income style payment for artists and will inform future Government policy on how best to support artists and the arts sector.”
She added: “There is huge interest internationally in the scheme and I happy that Ireland leads the way in innovations as to how best to support artists and the arts sector”.
The scheme was launched in Ireland in April this year and attracted over 9,000 applications.
Payments to the 2,000 recipients began this month and the data collection and research project has begun.
Those participants will be provided with €325 (£285) a week for three years to allow them to “focus on their creative practice and to facilitate research on the impact this will have on their practice, their wellbeing and the arts sector as a whole”, the Minister confirmed.
“Another 1,000 participants in the control group will be paid €650 per year (£570) to engage in the data collection and it is the comparison of the two groups over time that will provide the crucial evidence of the impact of the scheme,” she added.
“Details will be collected on numerous topics, including income and earnings, time use, work and job quality, wellbeing and mental health.
“Much of the data we collect will be made available at an aggregate level to support others wishing to do research on the topic,” Minister Martin confirmed.
