Minutes of Proceedings

In attendance for a briefing session at 10:30am on the Department's draft Service Delivery Agreements: Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure - Dr Aideen McGinley, Permanent Secretary, Mr Nigel Carson, Culture and Recreation Division and Dr Dennis McCoy, Policy Evaluation and Research Unit.

The Chairperson opened the meeting, in public, at 10:23am.

1. Chairperson's business

1.1. The Chairperson reminded members that mobile phones should be completely turned off.

1.2. Members resolved to accept an invitation from the Nerve Centre in Derry to visit their premises to see at first hand the facilities and development of their new web-site project 'CultureNorthernIreland'.

1.3. Members noted an invitation from the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland to a seminar in early March which will focus on the Ulster Canal Project and the economic benefits to local communities on the canal route.

Agreed: That the Chairperson and Mr Jim Wilson would represent the Committee at the seminar.

1.4. Members noted that Dr Bob O'Neill of Boston College would be bringing a party of around 45 members of the Manuscript Society to Ireland in May. The party plan to include Northern Ireland in the visit to look at original family papers in Killyleagh Castle, Castleward and Clandeboye.

Agreed: That the Committee would ask the Minister to consider hosting a reception for the party in Parliament Buildings on Monday 27 May 2002.

2. Minutes of the meeting of 10 January 2002

2.1. The draft Minutes of Proceedings for 10 January 2002 were agreed.

3. Matters arising

3.1. Para 5.1: Irish Dance Schools and All Ireland and World Dance Competitions

Members noted that the Clerk had written to the Irish Dance Commission about this issue and copied the letter to the Joint Committee for Tourism, Sport and Recreation and to the Joint Committee for Heritage and Irish Language in the Oireachtas. The Clerk will report back to the Committee when a reply has been received from the Commission. A Research Service background paper on Irish dance organisation in Ireland was also tabled for information.

4. Visits to local football grounds

4.1. The itinerary for the visit was agreed. It was further agreed that, in the absence of the Chairperson for part of the visit, Mr David Hilditch would deal with any media interviews during the visits to Cliftonville and Ballymena football grounds.

4.2. A draft Press Release was tabled for the Committee's agreement.

4.3. Agreed: That the Committee would visit Derry City and Omagh football grounds at a date to be arranged.

Mr Shannon attended the meeting at 11:00am.

5. Briefing on Service Delivery Agreements

5.1. The Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure briefed the Committee on the detail of the Service Delivery Agreements.

5.2. Agreed: that the Chairperson would write to the Minister to record those areas where it was agreed with the Department that changes would be made to allow for easier and more transparent monitoring.

5.3. The Department agreed to relay to the Arts Council the Committee's concern that it had not been given any advance notice of the announcement about Lottery Funding allocations.

6. Any other business

6.1. Agreed: That the Clerk would write to the Committee for Agriculture and Rural Development about the production of the Loughs Agency's Annual Report and the forum to be established under Focus Groups.

6.2. Agreed: That the Clerk would write to the Department to establish what activities were ongoing in relation to the Department's responsibility for sea angling.

6.3. Agreed: That the Committee would write to the Committee for the Environment to express its concerns about the detrimental effect on Belfast and Northern Ireland's cultural heritage of proposed developments at 'Cabin Hill', the former home of Mr Wolff of Harland and Wolff, and 'Little Lea', the boyhood home of CS Lewis.

7. Date of next meeting

7.1. Members agreed to hold a special meeting on Tuesday 22 January 2002 in Room 152 from 12:00noon - 2:00pm to continue consideration of the draft Report on Cultural Tourism and the Arts.

7.2. The Committee will then meet again at 10:30am on Thursday 24 January 2002 in Interpoint.

The Chairperson declared the meeting closed to the public at 11:30am.

8. Consideration of the draft Report on the Cultural Tourism and the Arts Inquiry

8.1. The Committee began an initial scrutiny of the draft Report prepared by the Specialist Advisor.

The Chairperson brought the meeting to a close at 12:35pm.

EONeill
Chairperson