Irish Examiner view: State spending — Arts sector is not beyond scrutiny
The National Gallery of Ireland has to answer for buying a €125k scanner without having space for it.
Spending in the arts sector remains in the spotlight, and for all the wrong reasons.
The ill-fated IT system chosen by the Arts Council is now jostling for position with the scanner bought by the National Gallery of Ireland as the most glaring example of profligacy.
The former was never delivered, while the latter simply didn’t fit.
The IT system has the upper hand for now in terms of significance, given that it cost almost €7m, but the National Gallery’s scanner should not be written off.
It is surprising, for instance, that some enterprising young curator on Merrion Square has not re-imagined the bulky scanning machine as an art installation in itself; if a placard bearing the title were placed before it, the National Gallery might offload it to a gullible art dealer and make a handsome profit on the transaction.
On a more serious note, the secretary general of the Department of the Arts is writing to all organisations which have received significant sums from the department, asking that they provide evidence that money was correctly spent on capital and investment projects.
An entirely separate discussion could be held on why such a letter is necessary at all.
Hard experience tells us that not all government funds are spent in accordance with the norms of financial oversight, but this letter is an overt admission that processes and guidelines have not been adhered to, or else it would be unnecessary.
If large-scale spending is under the microscope, can smaller allocations be far behind?
It has been widely reported, for instance, that a well-known fraudster obtained €36,000 in Arts Council grants simply by applying with a false name.
If such schemes are so easily defrauded then there will have to be a considerable tightening of procedures and evaluations.
The argument has long been made that government support of arts infrastructure has helped to build Ireland’s reputation in literature and film, for instance.
Our cultural cachet is valuable, but the arts sector is not beyond accountability and clearly needs close examination.
There has been a good deal of discussion about antisocial behaviour in recent years, with anecdotal evidence suggesting a rise in aggressive behaviour and careless driving by motorists around the country, for instance.
Identifying the precise causes of such behaviour has proven difficult — one school of thought suggests that drivers who grew accustomed to empty roads during the pandemic cannot, or will not, adjust their behaviour to account for normal traffic levels.
The sheer number of cars using road infrastructure which is sometimes not fit for purpose does not help driving standards either.
Now, Limerick City and County Council has moved to keep its employees safe from dangerous drivers, though dangerous parkers might be a more accurate description.
A six-month trial of body-worn cameras for traffic wardens is set to begin in Limerick’s Metropolitan District.
Limerick City and County Council says the primary objective of the cameras is to provide the wardens with a safer working environment and to reduce the chances of violence and aggression.
“Cameras will remain off until a traffic warden perceives or anticipates a threat, at which point they will activate the device to record audio, video, and GPS data,” said a spokesperson.
Such a move is unfortunate but clearly necessary. Everyone is entitled to a safe workplace where they are not subject to intimidation, harassment, or physical violence.
While it is disappointing in the broadest sense that this is necessary, the authorities in Limerick are to be praised for taking the necessary steps to ensure the safety of their staff.
A name out of history reappeared this week with the news that Clint Hill had died at the age of 92.
For a whole cohort of readers, Hill’s name will conjure up memories of a particular day — November 22, 1963 — when US president John F Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas.
Hill was one of the Secret Service agents on duty that day.
In the Zapruder film of the assassination, he can be seen leaping onto the back of the car Kennedy was travelling in when he was shot and instructing Jackie Kennedy to get back to her seat.
For decades afterwards, that day in Dallas was a watershed moment for all who remembered it.
It was commonplace for people to share where they were when they first learned that Kennedy had been shot, such was the impact of the news.
Perhaps 9/11 is the only event since then with a similar global impact.
Hill himself was tormented for years by his memories of the assassination.
He struggled with alcohol and depression as he blamed himself for not reacting quicker when the shots were fired.
It was only decades later, when he returned to visit Dallas, that he realised there was no more he could have done on the fateful day.
