The Stage

ACE avoids axe in ‘bonfire of the quangos’

Published Monday 26 July 2010 at 18:12 by Alistair Smith

Arts Council England has emerged unscathed from a major “efficiency” review of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s arm’s length bodies, which has seen both the UK Film Council and the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council abolished.

The changes will also see UK Sport and Sport England merged, while the National Lottery Commission and the Gambling Commission will also come together. The Theatres Trust will also see a minor change to its constitution - it will be declassified to become an independent statutory body, meaning that the power to appoint the organisation’s trustees will be transferred from the culture secretary to The Theatres Trust itself.

Culture secretary Jeremy Hunt commented on the changes in a written statement: “Further work will be done in discussion with the bodies concerned and other interested parties over the summer to finalise the details and timing of these proposals.

“Where bodies are to be abolished we will look to transfer key functions to other existing bodies so as to continue to support our sectors and preserve the necessary expertise. In the case of the Film Council, for example, this will include their current responsibilities for the distribution of Lottery funding for films, which will be maintained… We will also continue to explore further opportunities to improve the accountability and coherence of our public bodies landscape.”

ACE, meanwhile, has so far been unaffected by the reorganisation, although that it is understood that it might be required to take on some, or all, of the responsibilities of the MLA.

Responding to the announcement, an ACE spokesperson said: “We work particularly closely with the MLA at a national and local level and we share their absolute commitment to ensuring the cultural vibrancy and richness of every locality in England. We appreciate that the next few months will be a critical time for them as they iron out the precise details of how their important work is taken forward.”