We will have a much less diverse culture sector
◆ Former SNP minister brands Creative Scotland cuts ‘nonsensical’ as book festival demands a ‘total rethink’
A former Scottish Government minister has called for a U-turn on new cuts to Creative Scotland as he warned the shutdown of a vital fund for artists was "nonsensical and insensitive” to the culture sector.
Ben Macpherson said he was perplexed that Creative Scotland’s open fund was being closed when the Scottish Government had committed £100 million in new investment in the arts industry.
The MSP for Edinburgh Northern and Leith, a former public finance minister under Nicola Sturgeon, has written to Finance Secretary Shona Robison raising concerns the fund’s demise will lead to “a much less accessible, less culturally diverse, and less dynamic cultural sector”.
Mr Macpherson’s intervention came as the new director of the Edinburgh International Book Festival called for a “total rethink” of Scottish arts funding and hit out at the “absurdity” of Creative Scotland’s fund being shut down during the city’s “hugely successful” cultural events.
Jenny Niven has warned that its indefinite closure will have an “immediate and lasting impact” on Scotland’s cultural life.
Leading Scottish authors including Christopher Brookmyre and Louise Welsh have also spoken out over the fund’s shutdown, which Creative Scotland has blamed on the Scottish Government’s refusal to release more than £10m of funding in its previously agreed budget.
Its closure has triggered an arts industry rebellion, with more than 14,500 backers for a petition demanding action to avert a “cultural catastrophe,” more than 2500 Scottish artists calling for the reinstatement of the open fund “as a matter of urgency”, and more than 1,000 Scottish musicians, bands and industry workers have called for a rethink of the government’s cuts.
Mr Macpherson told Ms Robison that his constituency was home to “many brilliant and innovative creatives and businesses” who relied on financial support from Creative Scotland or had started their careers with the help of the open fund, and said he had been inundated with concerns from individuals and organisations.
Mr Macpherson added: “From their experience and insights, constituents and relevant local organisations have emphasised to me their concerns that the closure of this fund will most probably result in a much less accessible,
Without public investment the arts become the preserve of the moneyed classes Louise Welsh, author
less culturally diverse, and less dynamic cultural sector.
“My constituents and I are grateful that the Scottish Government is committed to investing at least £100m more annually in culture and the arts by the financial year 2028/29, despite the immense pressures on public spending at this time.
“However, we are perplexed that the closure of the open fund seems contrary to the Scottish Government’s commitment.
“Many constituents have also conveyed to me that the sudden closure of the fund, with such short notice, has understandably created alarm.
“Moreover, announcing the closure during the remarkable Edinburgh festivals seems nonsensical and insensitive to many of my constituents.”
Mr Macpherson said he did not believe the fund’s closure was an “appropriate response” to the “extraordinary pressures” on the Scottish Government’s budgets following UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ public spending cuts announcement in July.
He added: “Culture funding has a multiplier effect in local economies, is a huge and growing contributor to GDP and GVA, and its social benefits are well understood.
“Funding the arts also helps to reduce demand on other budget portfolios like health, justice and social security, as it can be useful for helping with social prescribing and raising employability prospects. Creative businesses and artists are key to building a wellbeing economy and society.”
The Edinburgh International Book Festival has revealed that more than 60 per cent of authors who have appeared in its recent line-ups have been supported via Creative Scotland’s open fund.
They include Amy Liptrot, Kirstin Innes, Kathleen Jamie, Louise Welsh, Doug Johnstone, Kirsty Logan, Jen Stout and James Robertson.
Ms Niven said: “The timing of the open fund announcement highlights its absurdity – we’ve just staged hugely successful festivals that saw over 100,000 people come through the doors of our new home alone and brought people from across the world to enjoy Scotland’s culture.
“The positive social and economic impact of the festivals on Edinburgh and Scotland is undeniable, and they just wouldn’t exist without the work of writers and artists.
“With public funding already cut to the quick, this is a huge blow for the creative community that will have an immediate and lasting impact on the cultural life of Scotland. We need a total rethink of arts funding and we need it now.”
Mr Brookmyre said: “It’s been repeatedly demonstrated that pound for pound, investment in the arts brings a greater return than in any other sector, and yet it is always seen as a soft target for budget cuts, because to a certain ignorant mindset they are considered a luxury.
“Governments need to stop asking themselves how they can afford to spend money on the arts when they should be asking themselves how they can afford not to.”
Ms Welsh said: “Without public investment the arts become the preserve of the moneyed classes.
“There will still be films, plays and books, but their sto ries will focus on an elite, with a few comic walk-on parts for the rest of us.
“Most children will not see themselves on stage, screen or page and so they, and we, will dream smaller.
“The arts are the soundtrack of your life, the patterns on your clothes, the poem you read at your mother’s funeral, the poem someone read at your wedding. They are that book that made you see things differently, the film that made you cry, the song you sang along to on your drive into work.
“The arts encourage us to think, to ask difficult questions, to imagine a better world, to be aware of injustice and to walk in someone else’s shoes.”
Culture secretary Angus Robertson said: “I understand the concerns of many people within the artistic community, and I want to reassure those individuals that we are listening very carefully.
“We are dealing with very significant challenges in the public finances, which are exacerbated by the UK Government’s recent announcements.
“We will set out in due course what further steps we can take to address the challenges that we are facing and to make sure that we address the issues that have been drawn to our attention by the artistic community.”