Memorandum submitted by the Department
for Culture, Media and Sport
The Department welcomes the Select Committee's
interest in musical theatre and in particular the difficulties
facing the Bridewell Theatre.
As the Committee will know, the Department for
Culture, Media and Sport does not fund the arts directly. It is
however directly answerable to the Treasury and Parliament, including
the Select Committee, for the way in which Arts Council England
disperses grant-in-aid and lottery funds to artists, arts organisations
and art forms. We have therefore a direct interest in the Council's
activities insofar as they provide value for money and contribute
to the Department's wider strategic priorities as determined by
the Secretary of State.
Arts Council England is the national development
agency for the arts. Between 2003 and 2006 they will invest £1.6
billion of public funds in the arts in England, including funding
from the National Lottery. The relationship between the Arts Council
and DCMS is governed by the arm's length principle, that is, the
Council operates at arm's length from Government.
As a Non Departmental Public Body, the Arts
Council operates within the guidance DCMS sets through a range
of control documents, including a Funding Agreement and Lottery
directions. In the context of these documents the Council has
autonomy in the way it exercises artistic, financial and managerial
judgement in the distribution of funding for the arts, and in
the development and implementation of its arts strategies.
We are aware that, in addition to its oral evidence,
Arts Council England also submitted written papers on its support
for musical theatre generally and the particular issues raised
by the Bridewell Theatre (these are attached for ease of reference).
We also understand that a number of other organisations may be
submitting written evidence to the Committee. We look forward
to receiving a copy of the Committee's report in due course.
21 November 2003
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