Investing in culture isn’t just for art lovers

James Moore, The Independent

Arts funding? To some, this sounds like a superfluous cost, when you put it like that. We’ll think about the wooly umbrella of “the arts” — whatever that means — after we’ve dealt with the important stuff, right? That’s one narrative. And it’s gained enough traction in recent years to allow the government to shove arts funding into the deep freeze.

If we look at what “arts funding” actually means, it is of paramount importance. I think it should be rebranded as “investing in Britain’s creative industries”. Those industries are world-class. They bring in tourists. They create jobs. They can even save lives.

Because arts funding also gives deprived kids musical instruments, and lets them into rehearsal spaces like in the guts of the Roundhouse in Camden, a safe place that might bring a little light into their otherwise troubled lives. Perhaps it means a session with John Legend at the Royal Albert Hall.

So perhaps we ought to invest in “the arts”. Perhaps we need to. Their future is by no means secure. The energy crisis could, in some cases, finish what Covid started. And once a venue has rolled over and died, that’s often it. New ones aren’t easily created. I’ve been monitoring the fortunes of the Royal Albert Hall, the Roundhouse and the plethora of small venues in which artists hone their talents to make it big. After surviving their enforced hibernation during the pandemic, things are once again looking dicey — and the lower down the pecking order you go, the dicier it gets.

The Hall has, for example, found itself in the unusual position of having “dark” nights, in which no show has been booked. Things, obviously, didn’t immediately pick up post-Covid. CEO Craig Hassall told me that the energy crisis has left the venue facing an uncomfortable question: do we put on shows to fill those nights or is it more cost-effective to keep them dark, given the £2m rise in the venue’s energy costs — even after the government’s business support package is factored in?

Profits, which run at about £6m annually, go towards maintaining the building and then paying for activities like the aforementioned sessions with John Legend. It isn’t hard to guess what will be put at risk if money gets tight, despite best intentions.

Roundhouse CEO Marcus Davey is not yet contemplating cutting shows. But he’s still facing tough choices. Energy previously counted for 1 per cent of the budget – now it’s close to five. And that is far from the only cost that is rising.

“We can’t see beyond six months,” he warned. “My feeling is if the arts are going to flourish, they need support.”

The arts? Or Britain’s world-class creative industries? We’ve spent enough money investing in and subsidising offshore fossil fuels, which pollute the planet. Isn’t it time we gave a bit more backing to the industries that deliver joy? And institutions within them which not only do that, but also provide a lifeline for young people?

The Music Venue Trust, which represents the sector, said several of its members are now being supported by its crisis team. That sort of support, however, can’t last forever. The business support package is “sufficient to avert the collapse of the sector if it is fully delivered” at the prices that have been quoted. But what about afterwards?

The government has indicated that “clubs” will attract support for longer than the six-month initial period, based on the particular challenges the energy crisis poses to them and, of course, the particular affection in which they are held by parts of the British public (who might also be inclined to vote Conservative). There is a crossover between clubs and music venues. Clubs are often venues. They’re the first place many artists get to perform in.

The Trust has asked for clarification over the broad term “club”. It believes the definition should include “music venues and other licensed premises essential to the grassroots music ecosystem”. The Trust says it “anticipates’’ that this will be the case. But it is yet to receive an answer.

“It’s so important that people can go out and share a moment together. We’ve been robbed of these cultural events,” Hassall said to me. “We need them.” He’s right. We do. There are, however, people outside big urban centres who might yet get permanently robbed of those things. And even where they continue, a reduction in their number would make life in this country sadder and greyer.

The Cultural Recovery Fund that ran through Covid is one of the few genuinely positive legacies to flow from Boris Johnson’s premiership. It would be a tragedy if the money invested through it were to be squandered.