The Stage

Olympic threat to arts funding

Published Wednesday 16 June 2004 at 11:20 by Ruth Gillespie

Lottery funds available to British theatres risk being raided by the government in support of its bid to host the 2012 Olympics, two senior industry campaigners have warned.

Theatres Trust director Peter Longman is claiming that the prospect of using lottery money to pay for the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics in London was causing “considerable uncertainty” in the industry. He added: “We don’t yet know how much it is likely to cost and whether money will be taken away from other areas to fund it.”

Echoing his concerns is director of the National Campaign for the Arts Victoria Todd. She has warned that lottery money is not a boundless source of funding and has called on the government to look to its own long-term strategies to ensure the success of Britain’s arts.

She added: “It is extremely important that the principle of additionality is adhered to. Many of the projects funded by lottery money have proved invaluable.

“However, it is vital the government maintains its own commitment and responsibility to the arts.”

London along with Paris, New York, Madrid and Moscow will go forward to the final vote next year after being shortlisted by the International Olympic Committee to host the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics. Culture secretary Tessa Jowell has pledged an arts festival will accompany the games should London’s bid win.

A spokesperson for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, which masterminded the bid, said: “The lottery exists to fund great projects like this. Should we win the bid to host the Olympics it will be a day of rejoicing for the people of this country. If successful, a dedicated Olympic Lottery game will be set up to fund the events. The government has acknowledged that this will lead to a diversion of funds across the board but believes that the benefits resulting from the Olympics will far outweigh the drawbacks.”

Longman has also called on the government to confirm what will happen to the Lottery Fund after 2009, when Camelot’s second seven-year licence expires, warning that a change of policy could have detrimental effects on the industry.

He said: “The Heritage Lottery Fund is still doing the job it was set up to do and the major part of its budget is still being allocated for significant capital projects to help protect and sustain the heritage, including land, buildings and museums.

“If you are running a capital programme, you may need to put requests in now for money that will not be released for another five years and people need to know what is happening in advance. If the Heritage Lottery Fund is to continue its carefully planned programme, it needs to know that the cash will be available tomorrow to meet promises made today.”

Earlier this year Longman highlighted his concerns for the future of the industry after Arts Council England reduced the amount of money available for capital projects through its Arts Capital Programme. It emerged in March that while the total value of the original funding applications was £255 million, less than a quarter of that was actually made available. While 32 schemes received awards, another 132 projects got turned down, leaving venues like Oval House facing closure.