The Arts Council of Northern Ireland welcomes the modest increase in the budget it will receive as a result of the Northern Ireland Budget 2008-2011, announced by the Minister for Finance on Monday 21st January 2008.

The Arts Council will receive an uplift through its parent body, the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL), of £7.55 million over the next three-year funding period. There will be an increase in the coming financial year 2008-09 of £1.7 million on top of our current annual budget of £10.5 million. This is an appreciable improvement in year one on the pre-consultation allocation of an uplift of just £500,000.

The Budget represents an encouraging start to the relationship we have been building with the new Northern Ireland Executive. However, the settlement remains short of our assessment of need for the arts sector (an extra £26 million over the next three years) and will not deliver a per capita funding figure that matches that of our neighbours on these islands.

The campaign to press the Executive to increase arts funding may not have delivered the full expectations of the arts sector, but it emphatically succeeded in bringing a coherent and compelling case for the arts to the forefront of political awareness. The outcome shows that our local politicians have listened to the arguments and are now responding positively, within the confines of a tight budget round, to the invaluable creative, social and economic contribution of the arts to the process of building a better Northern Ireland.

Peter Robinson, Minister for Finance, acknowledges the benefits of the arts to Northern Ireland in his Budget speech:

“Turning to the issue of funding for the Arts, the Executive recognises the importance of the sector, not just in terms of entertainment and relaxation but also because of the significant potential contribution it can make to our tourist sector and to wider economic growth.

“Therefore, the Executive has agreed an additional allocation to DCAL of £2 million in each of the next two years to address the concerns expressed during the public consultation process relating to Arts, as well as Sports and Library funding.”

The budget leaves the Arts Council in a better position to look after the needs of our core arts organisations. However, serious challenges still remain ahead for the sector, and the Council faces difficult decisions as the additional funds do not meet the needs of a sector facing the loss of an estimated £4.55 million Lottery proceeds, diverted to the Olympic Games 2012.

The arts sector deserves great praise for the strength and persistence of its response to the draft Budget, which the politicians simply couldn’t ignore. The arts campaign prompted the Alliance Party’s private members motion at the Assembly calling for parity of funding the arts in NI, which secured the support of the main political parties; created the dominant voice at each of the regional public consultation meetings; led to the much-publicised rally at Stormont; and produced the majority of submissions to the consultation website.

Peter Robinson singles out for special mention the success of the campaign in his Budget speech:

“Of all the issues, funding for the Arts was the main theme in terms of the quantity of responses, reflecting the well organised effort by the arts sector to highlight its concerns. I pay tribute to them for their efforts.”

The Arts Council will continue to build on the healthy relationships we have been able to establish through our discussions with local Ministers and District Councillors since the restoration of devolved government in Northern Ireland. We intend to ensure that the Budget 2008-2011 and the dialogue the process has ignited, signals a turning point in attitudes to arts funding in Northern Ireland, so that we can look forward in the longer term to funding which fairly reflects the value of our arts.

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