The Government’s Budget for 2009 Hits the Arts
So Alistair Darling has announced the 2009 budget to mixed reactions. Some say his economic projections for the coming years are ludicrous and that the Government is living in a “fantasy world”. Others are slightly more positive, but only as much as “it wasn’t as bad as we thought it was going to be”. While the budget will affect us all personally and impact on everyone’s lives in some way or other, I was more concerned with the impact the current economic climate would have on the arts budget. Arts are always first on the chopping block. It is as if entertainment and culture are luxuries that we can’t afford in difficult times. With the joy that London felt after it was announced we had secured the 2012 Olympic Games, many people in the arts and entertainments industry began to notice subtle relocations of funds from community arts projects to the ever growing Olympic pot. As soon as a funding gap emerges, the arts suffer and that is a false economy, especially in an economic downturn.
The Guardian has taken the view that the £4 million cut from the Arts Council is good news following predictions that were much worse than this eventual result. The Stage however has emphasised that this will have an impact on the Arts sector and reiterate my view that arts are more than “a luxury add-on” to be cast off in times of want. My worry is for the future of entertainment if this trend continues. Now those artists who find themselves out of pocket can look to supplement their income by working with a company like the E3 Group. Our corporate clients are always looking to hire talented singers, dancers and performers so options still exist. It is those just getting in to the industry at, to coin a sporting phrase, ‘grass roots levels’. Without the funding to community projects, arts schools and workshops, our resource of entertainers may dry up as time goes by. With less encouragement and support for young talent, we run the risk of impacting on all of the entertainment sectors we love. Fewer British artists sweeping music and film award ceremonies. Reducing queues at The X Factor and Britain’s got Talent auditions and fewer Star studded West End productions. The Government must stop ignoring all the evidence indicating just how important entertainment and live performance is to the British public and stop treating the Arts Council and community arts projects as cannon fodder in difficult economic times.
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