DONIE'S TAXING ASSIGNMENT

"I'M ONE of the top five employers in the live Irish music industry, and have been for ten years," insists Senator Donie Cassidy. "That's something I don't get a lot of credit for, least of all from Hot Press."

Senator Cassidy was reacting angrily to the suggestion that there was a question mark over his personal commitment to the Irish music industry. In recent months, the Senator has been very vocal about what he describes as the "decay" in the industry and has made a number of proposals including one about the introduction of a new tax on fees paid to international artists who perform in this country.

Therefore, it came as something of a shock when members of the Jobs In Music campaign heard Louise Morrissey, one of Donie Cassidy's own acts, announce recently on The Pat Kenny Show that she was planning to record her next album outside Ireland, in Nashville no less.

"That is a misrepresentation of what Louise Morrissey said," asserts Cassidy. "My artists always record in Ireland. Foster and Allen, for example, have always done so. Occasionally though, someone like Louise Morrissey might need some special expertise and they might have to go somewhere like Nashville for that. However, I always have my albums mixed in Ireland."

Will Louise Morrissey's next album be recorded in Nashville? "As far as I am aware, no," replies Cassidy.

Meanwhile, in his guise as Senator, Donie says that he intends stepping up his campaign for government action to avert what he feels is an "impending disaster in the music business."

"I see myself in a privileged position," he continues. "I'm a member of the largest party in government and I have years of expertise and experience in the music industry. I have been twenty-two years at management standard in the business, and I feel that something has to be done before the business goes into further decay. Someone has to shout stop!"

Cassidy - in what is a curious echo of Hot Press' own proposal for an Irish Music Board - would like to see the setting up of a Music Council which would advise the government on how existing jobs in the music industry can be protected and how further employment can be generated.

"The film industry has managed to have the Film Board reset up, and fair play to them," he says. "But there is still no arm of government that could fund music business projects which would eventually create jobs. The music industry has far greater potential than the film world or the art world, twenty times more potential I'd say."

big name acts

As a method of both financing this Music Council and of stimulating greater interest in live Irish music, Senator Cassidy is putting down a motion for adjournment debate in the autumn sitting of the Seanad, proposing the introduction of a "retention tax" on money made by international acts who play concerts here. Such a levy already operates in Britain where it is set at 27%. Donie Cassidy would like to see a similar rate introduced in this country.

"I won't name any names 'cause the individual promoter will get upset but if a big international act plays in Ireland, between three and five buses will leave this town of Mullingar alone," he avers. "Every young person on those buses will spend between £50 and £75. That's their pocket money gone for several weeks. Therefore, local venues are being starved of business and that leads to a decrease in employment. Five years ago, the Federation of Musicians had between eight and a half and ten thousand members, today I'd say it's down to about four and a half thousand. And it's going to get worse unless something is done.

"I believe we could make about ten million a year from this tax," he insists. "It really is scandalous to see big artists coming into this country and walking away with anything from a quarter of a million to three quarters of a million, and not paying a penny tax.

"If one of my acts or anybody's acts plays in Britain, they have to pay over their 27% on everything they make above expenses. Retention taxes also operate in America and Canada. Why shouldn't we have one? On the other hand, if an artist comes here from a country that doesn't have a retention tax then we could maybe make an exception."

Of course, the promoters who bring in the international acts will argue that such a levy would inevitably discourage many big name acts from visiting Ireland, a small country with limited audiences.

"Well, it's a sad state of affairs if they're putting a few concerts by international artists above the jobs of young Irish people," says Donie Cassidy. "That to me is very unfair. Look at the Féile - two thirds of that was made up of Irish artists and it was a great success. We have to correct the imbalance. We cannot continue as a country without a retention tax if we don't want to see our own music industry disappear. Promoters only look at this from one perspective. I look at it on a wider scale, the future of music in this country.

"Everybody in the business has to do something. I'd even compliment Hot Press for what they've been doing in this area in recent months, even though I still don't think you give me a fair shake of the stick."