News – Arts build up for 2012

At the first meeting of the new Culture and Creativity Advisory Forum, members have called on the Government to develop a coherent vision and framework for the cultural activity attached to the Olympics or risk squandering a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The Forum, which includes Christina Coker, Chief Executive of Youth Music, Tony Hall, Executive Director of the Royal Opera House, Alex Poots, Director of the Manchester International Festival, and Sarah Weir, Director of Arts Council England London, is chaired by Culture Minister David Lammy and has been established to plan and discuss cultural events for the build-up to 2012 and the Cultural Olympiad which will run alongside the Games.
The meeting coincided with the publication of Culture Secretary Tessa Jowells list of departmental priorities for the remainder of the current Parliament. Citing the 2012 Olympics as the most significant challenge for the Department for Culture Media and Sport in the years ahead, she claims that she wants 2012 to have the same effect on culture as on sport: a renewed interest in participation. Jowell goes on to hint that recent structural changes at Arts Council England, which have resulted in a number of job losses, may not yet be at an end: I have started a period of further reform of the Arts Council so it can deliver better service to its clients. The benefits are well worth it. Meanwhile, the parliamentary Culture, Media and Sport Committee has invited written submissions as part of its long-term inquiry into preparations for the 2012 Olympics. The inquiry is looking into the costs of staging the Games, ways of maximising the Olympic legacy and how the benefits of the Games might be felt outside London.

http://www.parliament.uk/commons/selcom/witguide.htm