One of Feile an Phobail’s three main funders unwilling to disclose how much money they give to West Belfast Festival

Attendances at the August festival have continued to rise but each year the same controversy has arisen with pro-IRA chanting, this time during Sunday’s performances by Shebeen and the Wolfe Tones.

Tourism Northern Ireland offered a statement on its funding of Feile, but would not divulge how much money it gives to the festival.

A spokesperson said: “Tourism NI offers funding to Feile an Phobail for the marketing and cultural elements of the programme.

"We have made it clear to the organisers of Feile an Phobail of the conditions which they are expected to meet in order to receive funding from Tourism NI, the need to promote a positive view of the destination and deliver an inclusive and welcoming experience for all.

“We will be reviewing the events that took place at Sunday night’s concert and the adherence to the funding offer terms and conditions. It is therefore not appropriate to comment further at this time.”

The Arts Council of Northern Ireland, which is funded by the National Lottery, said it has awarded £116,599 to Feile an Phobail from the 2023/2024 Annual Funding Programme.

They said it was possible to “claw back” funding to clients if there has been a significant breach of their agreement.

A spokesperson said: “This award contributes to the organisation’s annual running costs, including an element of staff salary and marketing costs – it does not include the costs associated with programming individual artists and musicians.

"Feile’s flagship August festival is one of Northern Ireland’s largest community festivals, packed with almost 300 events, including talks, exhibitions and theatre productions.

"It has had a predominantly transformative and positive impact in West Belfast since its inception in 1988.

"As a funding and development agency the Arts Council does have the right to claw back or retain a percentage of funding offered to a client if we find there has been a significant breach of their commitment to good relations.

"A commitment to good relations is a mandatory pre-requisite for all Arts Council funding and we expect all arts organisations which receive our funding to adhere to those obligations.

"The Arts Council Board reminded Feile of their obligations before the festival opened this year and will address this issue again at its earliest opportunity. We have no further comment to make at this time.”

Belfast City Council pointed out that none of the money it gives Feile goes towards commercial events.

A council spokesperson said: “Feile an Phobail has received funding via council’s Cultural Multi-Annual Grants scheme for four years (2020-2024) to support a programme of 250+ inclusive arts and cultural activities over a number of days each year.

“While council supports the festival on this basis, our funding does not support commercial events, such as the event by the Wolfe Tones.”

They added: “Our funding to Feile for their August programme through this particular grant scheme is for a four-year period, equating to £244,000 for each year of the four-year period.”