To ask the Minister for Communities to detail any (i) current initiatives; and (ii) future plans, to support the arts, given the substantial economic return generated by investment in this sector.

My Department is developing a new 10-year policy for the arts, through the Heritage, Culture and Creativity Programme. It will seek to develop the evidence and support the arguments for sustaining the work of the arts sector.

The Arts Council, as the funding and development body for the arts in Northern Ireland, details its funding initiatives in line with its strategic plan on its website: https://artscouncil-ni.org/funding/ and https://artscouncil-ni.org/what-we-do/our-strategy.