The last 10 years has been a ‘golden age’ for the arts, and London has become the creative capital of the world, said Tony Blair in a speech at Tate Modern in London, on 6th March, attended by Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell and Culture Minister David Lammy.
The speech accompanied a new report, Culture and Creativity in 2007
Mr Blair said the arts were ‘more confident, more assertive, more creative and alive’ than a decade ago and were now of fundamental importance to Britain.
Britain today relies on the talent and ability of its people, and when more children discover the joy of art, they also learn ‘the art of living, thinking and creating’
Had we continued with the funding regime and the policies that existed a decade ago, then many institutions would have diminished or closed.
He suggested that the Arts Council operates as an arms-length body, placing the state in a position of doing what it has historically done well: funding, rather than controlling, the arts.
Mr Blair addressed concerns over the comprehensive spending review and the claim on resources made by the Olympics, saying that although decisions can't be revealed yet, everyone in Government is proud of the achievements of this past decade, and ‘having avoided boom and bust in the economy, we don't intend to resume it in arts and culture.’
He said that The Creative Economy Programme will be the first comprehensive assessment of the state of the UK's creative economy, and there will be a Green Paper in the summer of 2007 that will seek to increase the productivity of the sector further.
Read the full speech on 10 Downing St website
A spokesperson for Arts Council England said:
‘We welcome the Prime Minister's recognition that the arts and culture are a real success story for the nation, and one that has been achieved through the partnership of public investment and the efforts of the arts sector.
'We also welcome his statement that the government does not intend to return to a "boom and bust" approach to public investment in arts and culture.
'But we are not celebrating yet - we will continue to make the case to Government for continued investment in the arts until a decision is made on future funding.'
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For more information about the Government’s Spending Review and making the case for funding the arts for success, please contact our Communications team in your region:
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