When the Scottish Labour Party appointed James Boyle (former Controller of Radio Four, lifelong civil servant and former Chair of the Scottish Arts Council) to Chair the Scottish Cultural Commission, it might have imagined it was securing a lapdog that could easily be called to heel. But even the best trained of lapdogs still have teeth, and the Commission?s demands for a further injection of £100m to support Scotland?s cultural infrastructure must have come as an unexpected nip at the heels of the Scottish Parliament. In response, MSPs last week systematically extracted those teeth by resolutely consigning the Cultural Commission?s year of work and its 500-page report to the bin. The whole exercise can now only be seen as a colossal waste of effort and, crucially (given the fact that everyone agrees that the status quo is not an option), time. And, of course, of an estimated £500,000.
And yet, it is possible to see the Commission and the debate it has generated as a positive thing. Debate about the value of culture and its role in contemporary society has spread beyond the arts pages and into Parliament and coffee shops. As one MSP put it, ?[crossing] the Rubicon to recognise that culture is not a side issue or a fringe activity, but entirely consistent with, and a vital contributor to, the economic and social well-being of our nation.? It appears that politicians and bureaucrats alike are acknowledging that cultural activity needs resources and it needs direction. This could all prove to be very helpful for the Scottish Arts Council (SAC). As the political twists unwind, the Commission?s legacy could yet prove to be a kiss of life for SAC and Boyle?s successor as Chair, Richard Holloway.
Liz Hill and Brian Whitehead, Co-editors