An e-mail from the Arts Council of Northern Ireland ...
There have been concerns for some time about the reallocation of arts funding to meet the mounting costs of the Olympic Games.
The Prime Minister appeared to give assurances only last week of the Government’s commitment to arts and culture in Britain, when he emphasised the importance of culture to creating a meaningful and memorable Olympic Festival. He also spoke of the government’s commitment to avoid a ”boom and bust” economy which would do untold, long-term damage to the arts.
We share with the other Arts Councils in the United Kingdom, the deep sense of disappointment that money is to be diverted from the arts. We are horrified at the prospect of a £4.25 million reduction, coming at a time when mainstream government funding for the arts in Northern Ireland has been frozen for three years, and when the arts in Northern Ireland can least afford it.
We have made our funding decisions for 2007/2008 on the basis of projected income. Those decisions were painful. The sector faces the bleakest year in a decade, and further reductions will be directly felt by arts and community projects.
We can now only impress upon our political leaders the need for a positive settlement through the Comprehensive Spending Review, to compensate for the reduction of Lottery funds as a result of the 2012 Olympic Games.
NOTE:
The Art Council of Northern Ireland’s income from the National Lottery has already dropped from a high of £10.3 million in 1997/98 to £7.02 million in 2006/07, with a further predicted fall to £5.1 million by 2011/12.
The bleakest year in a decade? Oh dear. And it's been pretty bleak for as long as I can remember.
