An external review into the governance and organisational culture of the Arts Council has been ordered following the failure of a €6.675 million IT project.
Arts Minister Patrick O’Donovan announced the probe after highlighting serious governance deficiencies within the organisation.
“I am today announcing the details of an external review of the governance and organisational culture in the Arts Council,” he said.
“Two weeks ago, I brought to Government the Arts Council’s 2023 Annual Report and Financial Statements, as well as a report on an unsuccessful IT project at the Council.
“This project, which failed to deliver and cost €6.675m, has given rise to fundamental questions about governance within the Arts Council. I have been clear that these governance failures must be addressed quickly in order to safeguard public funding and to prevent a recurrence of issues of this kind.”
The review will be conducted by an Expert Advisory Committee composed of three governance specialists: Professor Niamh Brennan (Chair), Dr. Margaret Cullen, and John McCarthy. O’Donovan stated that the committee would ensure the review process is “robust, fair and transparent” and lead to “practical, actionable recommendations to improve the Arts Council’s governance arrangements.”
The Minister also committed to keeping the Government informed as the review progresses.
Growing Concerns Over Public Spending
The decision to launch the external review follows a series of controversies surrounding public expenditure by the Arts Council and other cultural bodies.
The Minister pointed out that Arts Council funding has increased by 75% in recent years to €140 million in 2025, making it imperative to ensure public confidence in its governance.
“The public must be satisfied that the Arts Council’s corporate governance framework is fit for purpose and supports the delivery of its statutory responsibilities,” O’Donovan said.
“Assurance is also required that the organisational culture of the Arts Council, at all levels, is open and transparent and that it engages appropriately with sectoral stakeholders.”
In addition to the Arts Council review, O’Donovan also announced an examination of his own Department’s internal governance procedures.
This separate review will assess risk management, escalation processes, and the Department’s oversight mechanisms to prevent similar failures in the future.
“The review will ensure that the Department has a comprehensive and effective oversight and governance framework for all bodies under its aegis to ensure full compliance with all public policy directives,” he said.
The Department has also reached out to all bodies under its authority to request details of capital projects exceeding €500,000 or other major expenditures that have been abandoned or materially failed to deliver.
Broader Issues with Public Expenditure
The announcement comes amid growing public and political frustration over wasteful government spending.
Earlier this morning, Taoiseach Micheál Martin expressed his dismay over another case of mismanaged public funds, where an X-ray scanner purchased for the National Gallery in 2017 at a cost of €124,805 has remained unused due to an inability to find a suitable location.
“It’s completely unacceptable, and people are right to be angry about it,” Martin said.
“It’s very difficult to explain why someone would embark upon the purchase of a scanner that they didn’t have a facility to locate it in.”
Tánaiste Simon Harris echoed these sentiments, describing the issue as “incomprehensible” and saying that his reaction was one of “absolute fury”.
Opposition parties have also seized on the scandal, with Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald stating that “the buck stops with Government” when it comes to the mismanagement of public funds.
Labour TD Duncan Smith called for stricter oversight from the Department of Public Expenditure to prevent similar waste, while Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín accused the Government of “incinerating taxpayers’ money on a daily basis” with no accountability.
Political Fallout
The revelation of the failed Arts Council IT project has prompted further scrutiny of the Government’s handling of public funds from Opposition parties..
Sinn Féin’s Arts spokesperson Joanna Byrne previously accused the Government of deliberately withholding the details of the Arts Council’s €6.675 million IT failure until after the general election, describing it as “another attempt to pull the wool over the eyes of voters.”
Byrne also highlighted concerns over wider spending issues within the Arts Council, citing a “staggering” €9 million spent on consultants, a €30,000 property consultancy fee for a new headquarters that never materialised, and a significant increase in costs over the past year.
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has been urged to investigate the matter, with opposition TDs demanding full transparency and accountability. Tánaiste Harris has previously stated that he supports PAC involvement, insisting that “extraordinarily serious questions” remain about the spending and oversight of the Arts Council.
“Looking at the table of companies involved in this project, at least 20 are listed. It is spreadsheet after spreadsheet. People made significant amounts of money and profited from this, but we do not have a computer system,” Harris remarked.
With the external review now set in motion, Minister O’Donovan has committed to addressing the governance failures at the Arts Council to restore trust in the organisation and ensure better financial oversight going forward.