Arts Council Chief Executive Roisin McDonough has called on the Northern Ireland Executive to consider the positive economic returns generated by arts and culture before making any decision on the arts budget here.
Following the recent publication of the Arts Council's Annual review, Roisin McDonough called for any reduction to the arts budget to be fair and proportionate in line with the overall NI Block Grant. The Arts Council Chief Executive also highlighted the contribution made by the Creative Industries as one of the fastest growing sections of the economy.
"Investment in our creative industries is generating high economic returns and there is the potential for much more. With the decline in many of our traditional industries the source of our wealth, job creation and economic competitiveness is shifting to our burgeoning creative sector," she said.
The Creative Industries, which includes innovation in the areas of film, craft, digital media and publishing, currently employ over 33,000 people in Northern Ireland and generate £582million annually. She continued: "In order for the Creative Industries to continue to grow to match the rest of the UK, government needs to continue to invest and support the sector and its entrepreneurial people. Public spending on the arts in Northern Ireland each year is tiny compared with other government departments. In terms of head of population it equates to less than the cost of two tickets to the local cinema. A cut to that small investment will erode the very product upon which growth has been secured and cause irreparable damage."