Minister has greater power over the Abbey

MINISTER for Arts, John O’Donoghue, will have greater control over running the Abbey Theatre after its shareholders voted overwhelmingly for his proposals to overhaul the theatre’s governance at the weekend.

With the cash-strapped theatre heavily in debt, board and shareholders had little choice but to vote for the proposals. Government funding through the Arts Council was under threat if they were rejected.

In effect, to save the theatre, the Abbey’s board and shareholders had to vote themselves out of a job to make way for the new organisation and company.