The pastor risks suppressing “freedom of thinking,” suppressing culture wars, and as part of the crackdown in Kangos, the agency chair warns that he will discard his arm-length body for British art funds.
Ir Nicholas Cerrota told the Financial Times that the Arts Council England is a “buffer” between artists and government, and ending the arm length model of backing theatres, museums and music groups “will make politicians more likely to interfere.”
“The role of the Arts Council is to act as a guardian of artistic freedom, and without that freedom of mind and voice will move towards life in a country where freedom of thinking and voice is constrained,” he said.
“We see places where direct funding can be withdrawn as a result of government changes. I think it’s pretty self-evident that it doesn’t benefit the arts, debate and dialogue within society. It sharpens the division.”
Serota’s intervention is to save money and restore ministerial control over the policy field as the UK government prepares to abolish or integrate some of its more than 300 Quangos or semi-free non-governmental organizations.
Ballet Black’s “Shadows” performance © Ballet Black
Another review by Baronness Margaret Hodge, released in December and scheduled for release next year, considers work, efficiency and governance for the Arts Council England (ACE), but does not consider whether an institution should exist.
In the US, President Donald Trump set up himself up as the chairman of the Kennedy Center in February after vowing to wipe out the board of directors at the Washington Arts venue and end “anti-American propaganda.”
His administration has also moved to significantly cut funding for museums and libraries, limiting which projects could win grants for the National Fund, an independent governmental body.
Serota became ACE chair in 2017 and was reappointed for 18 months in January – predicting Hodge’s review would be “stricken but fair” and said “the strengths of the (current) British system” meant that individual politicians could not influence which organizations received in the same way as the US.
Founded in 1994 when the British Council of Arts dissolved, Ace received an annual income of £777 million in March 2024. About 70% of that came from the government. Over the same period, it invested £716 million through multiple funding streams, less than half the flagship “National Portfolio” program.
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Released in 2023, the 990 powerful portfolio consists of renowned organizations such as the Royal Opera House, the Royal Shakespeare Company, and Ballet Black, as well as small organizations such as the Postal Museum, the Midland Arts Centre, and the Redbury Poetry Festival.
An analysis published Friday by consulting firm Cebr on behalf of ACE, stimulating regional growth and set nine “spillover effects” from public arts funds, including “crowding” of private and foreign investments for new projects such as Aviva Studios in Manchester.
The cultural space, which opened two years ago on Granada Studios’ previous site, expects to create 1,500 direct and indirect jobs over the decade.
Aviva Studios in Manchester opened on Granada Studios’ previous site two years ago © Lowefoto/Alamy
Citing the government’s upcoming spending review, Cerota said Prime Minister Rachel Reeves had the opportunity to raise the UK’s cultural profile and pointed out “many examples of capital projects in which early investments by the public sector, particularly those that gave the private sector confidence.”
“It’s small in Treasury terminology, but local theatres and new galleries like Hepworthwakefield will have a major impact on the community,” he added.
As art funding is under pressure from narrowed budgets, Cerrota, director of Tate between 1988 and 2017, said the UK should follow France in providing tax credits to businesses sponsoring art venues.
Introduced in 2003, France’s Aillagon Law offers a 60% tax credit on donations that have risen to 0.5% of the company’s annual revenue.
“Given our corporate tax rate (the UK’s main tax rate is 25%), it would be a strong incentive for businesses,” Celota said, adding that the UK has “not played as much soft power as possible” in recent years.
The Ace fired fire in 2022 when he cut the grant to the British National Opera and ordered the opera company to move outside the capital.
Protesters oppose cutting funding for the UK National Opera in 2022 © Tolga Akmen/EPA/Shutterstock
Last month, Wigmore Hall, a classical music venue in central London, left the ace national portfolio and personally raised £10 million, making it a hit on red tape.
Cultural Secretary Lisa Nandi said, “We are committed to ensuring that arts and cultural institutions are truly everywhere for everyone, and London currently receives a third of ACE National Portfolio funding from 41% in 2018-23.
However, while the agency wanted “access to the best things in places they didn’t have before,” Celota warned that “there is a limit to the amount we can expect to remove (London’s) and continue to work.”
When asked if Quango is fully involved with the sector, Serota said the ACE needs to “build trust” and that it is preparing to ease the paperwork for grant holders.
“Ace listens, but you can’t listen enough. A truly effective arts council is seen as their voice by the organization and sometimes we don’t fully align with their concerns,” he said. “I’m not saying that the Arts Council is always doing it right, but I don’t think it’s losing its desire for advocacy.”
