Comprising of Motions 25, 26
The UK’s arts and culture sector is facing a perfect storm.
Congress notes the:
i. value of arts for society in terms of creativity, wellbeing and mental health, education, understanding our complex histories, and the pivotal role the arts play in social justice and healing
ii. importance of the creative arts to the UK economy (£109bn contributed in 2021)
iii. need for creative workers for fair and equal pay, dignity respect and rights including freelance artists
iv. necessity of a sustainable future for artist practices
v. necessity of arts education being accessible for all.
Funding cuts, rising touring costs and the cost-of-living crisis are threatening the future of the UK’s world-renowned orchestras and other arts organisations. Successive Conservative governments have overseen a 46 per cent real-terms cut to arts funding since 2010, which has had a direct impact on jobs and pay across the UK, at English National Opera, Northern Ballet and Welsh National Opera to name but a few. For the first time since 1984, the MU has successfully balloted for industrial action several times in the past 12 months, demonstrating how serious the situation has become.
Conference calls on the General Council to lobby for:
a. the government to prioritise funding of the arts as part of their plan for economic growth
b. a restoration and increase of public funding of the arts, as well as the exploration of new avenues for funding artists, including start-up grants for cooperatives
c. more transparent and diverse appointments to the Arts Council and other cultural bodies, with artist representatives involved in decision-making at every level. An end to nepotism and the opening of access to opportunities, influence and resources
d. an end to the low or no pay culture in the arts
e. a recognition that artwork is work, and that addressing artists’ precarious, low-paid working conditions is crucial to addressing inequalities in the arts
f. arts education to be restored to the curriculum within primary, secondary, further and higher education
g. access to arts education accessible for anyone at any age
h. artistic exchange across borders, including easing restrictions for exhibiting artist work
i. a coordinated approach to the creative arts in the UK.
Mover: Musicians’ Union
Seconder: Artists’ Union England