Differences have emerged between the Arts Council and the Department of Arts over when the department was informed about problems with a botched IT project. The Department of Arts is expected to order a review of how its agencies are overseen after details of the controversy emerged.
Differences emerge between council and the Department of Arts over timing of warning about botched IT project
Public funding for the Arts Council has surged in the last 10 years on foot of a Government commitment to increase arts funding and the Covid-19 pandemic, which saw a sharp increase in “emergency” funding – which the council retained after the pandemic ended. The source pointed to the council’s 2023 annual report, published earlier this week, which explicitly said the department was made aware of the difficulties in 2021.
Elsewhere, The Irish Times has established that the three main IT consultants that worked on the Arts Council project – Ergo, Codec and Expleo – continue to carry out extensive work for Government departments and State bodies.
ART COUNCIL IT PROJECT DEPARTMENT OF ARTS GOVERNMENT FUNDING REVIEW
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