Mirza to develop capital’s arts policies for Johnson

Published Wednesday 14 May 2008 at 14:50 by Alistair Smith

New London mayor Boris Johnson has appointed Munira Mirza, a broadcaster and commentator on issues of culture and race, as his policy director for the arts.

Mirza, who is currently on an Arts Council England Cultural Leadership placement at the Tate developing its training and volunteering strategy, will be one of ten mayoral appointments. She also writes and broadcasts about race, culture and identity and has previously made appearances on BBC 2’s Newsnight and BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme and written for the Guardian and the Daily Mail.

In 2005 she presented the BBC Radio 4 series, The Business of Race. She is co-author of the Policy Exchange report Living Apart Together: British Muslims and the Paradox of Multiculturalism and has edited a collection of essays for Policy Exchange entitled Culture Vultures: Is UK arts policy damaging the arts? She has been a council member on the UK committee of the European Cultural Foundation and is a founding member of the Manifesto Club.

As director of policy, arts, culture and the creative industries, she will be in charge of ensuring that Johnson’s manifesto commitments to the arts are met and developing cultural policy for the capital.

Johnson said: “Munira is a fantastic person to have on board and she brings a wealth of experience to the role. She has written extensively and with great insight on the arts for many years and will be a big asset to the team. London is currently the world leader in arts, culture and the creative industries and with Munira’s help, I want to ensure that our city retains the top position for years to come.

“I look forward to working with Munira in the coming months to deliver my key arts and culture manifesto pledges, including enriching cultural provision throughout Greater London and working with the arts and creative communities to promote access, diversity and excellence in the arts.”