Arts and Library book funds raised

THE Council has voted against the Chief Executive’s advice to increase funding to the Arts by ¤12,000 next year.

Councillor Dara Mulvey proposed funding the Contribution to the other Bodies Arts Programme by taking ¤12,000 out of the allocation put aside to pay the Council’s fees to ICBAN (Irish Central Border Area Network).

The Chief Executive Ciarán Hayes had proposed increasing funding to the Arts Programme by ¤8,000 anyway, to ¤260,000 in 2018.

Cllr Mulvey, seconded by Cllr Keith Henry, proposed to raise that by the ¤12,000 to ¤272,000.

Head of Finance Marie Whelan was strongly against the idea, telling members that she had numerous calls from ICBAN looking for their money for 2017.

“They have an expectation to get that money. It’s a statutory expectation on us. I’m going to be in a difficult position to have to say ‘ the Council will not meet your demand’,” she told members.

Ciarán Hayes pointed out that it was a Statutory bill levied on all local authorities: “It is your obligation to pay this,” he told members.

He said it was set in legislation that the funds for ICBAN would come from its members, including Sligo County Council.

Cllr Declan Bree said he would challenge that and said it was his understanding that the Regulating Authority couldn’t force councils to pay.

Councillor Hubert Keaney told the meeting that it wasn’t that they were refusing to pay the ICBAN fees but that an increase of 50 per cent in the ICBAN fee from last year was “too much”.

“I don’t know what the outcome will be, I have to oppose it,” replied the Chief Executive. Cllr Mulvey’s motion was passed. Separately, Cllr Rosaleen O’Grady’s motion to raise the Library Book fund budget by ¤5,000 to ¤70,000 was also unanimously agreed.