A TWO day conference at the weekend in Dublin Castle on "Festivals and Employment in Europe" was convened to discuss the findings of a report entitled, The Economic Impact Of 10 Main Festivals In Europe, writes Helen Meany. This is a study conducted for the European Commission by the Centre for Formation Studies and Resources for the Arts and Culture (CEFRAC), which compares selected arts festivals in France, Austria, Italy, the UK and Ireland in terms of the levels and types of employment generated, both direct and indirect, as well as income and visitor attendance.

The disparity in scale, character and budgets of the 10 festivals and the lack of a uniform methodology for the collection of data made direct comparisons difficult. The 131 page report reached the unsurprising conclusion that arts festivals generate an "explosion of seasonal employment" rather than permanent jobs.

The application of the terminology of market economics to the cultural field is, of course, problematic, since cultural policy is not solely market driven. Commissioner Padraig Flynn, in his opening speech to the conference, voiced the concerns of many present when he stated: "We must avoid submitting cultural activity to economic criteria alone."

The Cultural Director at the Council of Europe, Raymond Weber, described the CEFRAC report as "a starting point", acknowledging the need for more work and more concrete proposals, such as the establishment of an internet site called CORTEX, for cultural employment in Europe.