Asked by
The
To ask His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to
protect regional arts organisations and facilities funded by
local authorities, particularly where those local authorities are
facing financial difficulties.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for
Culture, Media and Sport ( of Whitley Bay) (Con)
My Lords, we recognise that local authorities face challenges.
That is why we have announced an additional £600 million to
bolster our existing support, alongside our £64 billion local
government finance settlement. We have also made permanent the
increases to cultural tax reliefs and provided support for energy
bills over the past two years. DCMS continues to advocate for and
help local decision-makers understand the full value of culture,
including through our culture and heritage capital programme.
The (CB)
My Lords, local government funding has been the foremost means of
support for our arts and cultural services. How then will the
Government address the significant underfunding which, over so
many years, has deprived organisations across the country of the
core investment essential to the day-to-day running of our
museums, galleries, libraries, theatres and orchestras? Does the
Minister accept that tax relief and the kind of capital
investment the Arts Council announced this week, though welcome
in themselves, are not the solution to a problem now driving our
arts and cultural services to the point of collapse?
of Whitley Bay (Con)
The noble Earl is right to point to the importance of local
government, which is a bigger funder of the arts than national
government or the Arts Council. It is a really important partner.
He points to the things that the Government have done through the
cultural tax reliefs—making them permanent is an important part
of the help, alongside the support we have given to organisations
in the face of rising energy costs. But, as I said in my initial
answer, my department advocates for the importance of cultural
spending, not just because it is a good in itself but because it
is a way for local authorities to deliver many of their other
statutory obligations in education and in health and well-being.
That is why we capture the data and measure it in a Green
Book-compliant way, so that we can have the conversation with our
colleagues at the Treasury and bring the successes that we saw in
the Budget, but also so that we can make that case clearly to our
colleagues in local government.
(Non-Afl)
My Lords, one of the most important cultural institutions in
Northern Ireland is the Linen Hall library in Belfast. As a
member, I would be delighted to host the Minister in the Linen
Hall the next time he is in Belfast, so he can experience it for
himself. It has been there since 1788 and it holds collections of
national and international significance—yet it is significantly
underfunded. Will the Minister think about the possibility of
looking at all the UK cultural institutions that are critical to
cultural well-being across the UK? I think it would be very
useful to find out where the critical institutions are.
of Whitley Bay (Con)
Many elements of culture are devolved, as the noble Baroness
knows, but other elements, such as the benefits through the
National Lottery, apply UK-wide. I would be delighted to make the
case for those benefits of our United Kingdom for cultural
organisations right across the UK.
(LD)
My Lords, the Minister mentioned the fact that there is a cost—to
things such as education and other bits of government—if you do
not have these functioning properly. Can the Government give us
some indication of the input needed from, for example, the
Department for Education, to deliver an acceptable level of
operation properly to the nation, and also the on-costs for
things such as the night-time economy?
of Whitley Bay (Con)
Many of these things are the responsibility of local authorities.
That is right—they are accountable to local people for the way
that they deliver them, but they have statutory obligations,
including in children’s services and education. The Department
for Education works closely with local authorities as they
discharge that duty and the Government provide help—my department
allocated £33 million only this week for library services and
museums around the country, helping people with their education
outside school settings.
(PC)
My Lords, does the Minister accept that, when local authorities
cut back and have an impact on the arts in their own area, it
impacts not only on the audiences, performing companies and
organisations there but also on the touring arts companies? I
think particularly of the Welsh National Opera, which circulates
considerably in England. In looking at this Question, will he
take a strategic attitude and have regard to the knock-on effect
that that can have?
of Whitley Bay (Con)
I talked with the Welsh National Opera only last week about the
importance and benefits of touring, as it does, between England
and Wales. I am sure the noble Lord would share my despair that
the Labour Government in Wales are cutting arts funding by 10%
and considering reintroducing fees for museums. I hope that he
sees the positive contrast with the increased budget that the
Government provided to Arts Council England at the last funding
round.
(Con)
My Lords—
of Hudnall (Lab)
My Lords—
(Con)
My Lords, we have a bit of an impasse. Could we hear from the
Conservative Benches and then the Labour Benches?
(Con)
Thank you. My Lords, despite financial difficulties, some
national museums are prevented by law from deaccessioning. What
is the Government’s policy towards regional museums?
of Whitley Bay (Con)
As my noble friend rightly points out, some of the national
museums are prevented in statute from deaccessioning items in
their collections. Other museums are under the direction of their
trustees, and about 18 months ago the Government, working with
Arts Council England and the sector, provided some guidance so
that the trustees of those collections were able to reflect on
the importance considerations as they made those decisions.
of Hudnall (Lab)
My Lords, the Minister will know that, for the past 40
years—probably more—the arts sector in this country has been
reliant principally on three sources of income: one is what it
can earn for itself through trading, another is the public
funding that comes from the Arts Council and local authorities,
and the third is private giving. He will also know that all three
of those funding streams are currently under enormous pressure.
Therefore, while accepting and being grateful for the work that
the Government have done recently, in view of the widespread
challenges that all arts organisations are currently facing, does
he think that it is enough?
of Whitley Bay (Con)
The noble Baroness is right. All three elements that she
mentioned are important, and all three are facing challenges at
the moment. That is why we were so pleased that the Chancellor
agreed to make permanent the tax reliefs in the Budget, because
that encourages the sort of risk-taking experiment, such as
touring a new production, that can help be a part of the
commercial income of our brilliant arts organisations. I am glad
that the noble Baroness has agreed to join the advisory panel for
Dame Mary Archer’s review of Arts Council England, which can look
at this important landscape and, I hope, inform the review and
the recommendations that it makes to government.
The (CB)
My Lords, I declare my interest as set out in the register.
Tomorrow sees the opening of the new Perth Museum, which is the
new home for the Stone of Scone, or the Stone of Destiny. This
has been made possible by £10 million of funding from the UK
Government, and also substantial funding from the local council.
This has been a brilliant model and will be transformational for
Perth. Can the Minister tell us a bit more about whether the
Government will make more of these types of transformational
investments—capital investments—to allow regions that are
relatively deprived to have vibrant arts and cultural
organisations?
of Whitley Bay (Con)
The noble Earl is right to point to the importance of partnership
working. The Government are very proud to have contributed
towards the museum in Perth and the new home for the Stone of
Scone—I hope that the opening tomorrow goes well. In the Budget,
we also joined the Welsh Government and Flintshire county council
in supporting Theatr Clwyd, which does important work not just in
north Wales but in the north-west of England. I had the pleasure
of visiting the theatre and seeing the renovation that has been
done there. Through both the levelling up fund and the UK shared
prosperity fund, the UK Government are playing their part in
helping arts and culture in every part of the United Kingdom.
(Lab)
My Lords, I know the Minister supports Labour’s view of a
positive approach to the arts and to culture. The UK originates
blockbuster films; it is one of only three net exporters of
music; we are the second-largest advertising supporter and the
largest book exporter; and the cultural sector, as the Minister
well knows, supports 2.5 million jobs and is worth £125 billion.
Yet, in 2021, the Government said that arts subjects were not a
strategic priority. Given that culture is one of our most dynamic
and growing sectors, is this still official Government policy? If
it is, will the Minister commit to reviewing and reversing this
damaging and neglectful approach to our arts and cultural
industries?
of Whitley Bay (Con)
The noble Lord is absolutely right to point to the importance of
arts and culture to our economy, as well as our society. It is
one of the Chancellor’s five priority areas for the economy, and
that was reflected in the Budget through the tax reliefs and
through the direct investment that was made. He is also right to
talk about the importance of cultural education, so that we can
unleash the talents of everybody and make sure that future
generations have the ability to join, enjoy and pursue a lifetime
in arts and culture. That is why I am delighted that the noble
Baroness, Lady Bull, is helping lead the advisory panel to inform
our new cultural education plan, working jointly with DCMS and
the Department for Education.
