One Wales ? one vision

I’ve been in post since July and have spent a large amount of that time meeting organisations, groups and individuals, and listening to their views on the health and well-being of the arts in Wales, and I’m encouraged by what I hear. Yes, we could do with more financial investment, but there is a willingness to work together for a common goal, enabling the arts to flourish in Wales. Arts and culture are integral to the Welsh Assembly Government’s progressive and ambitious programme of government for the next three and a half years. Indeed, the name of the document agreed by the Labour Party and Plaid Cymru as the basis for coalition government – ‘One Wales’ (Cymru’n Un in Welsh) is the title of a poem by one of Wales’ foremost Welsh language poets, Waldo Williams.

A collaborative future  

As a Minister, I am looking forward to implementing the commitments in One Wales relating to arts and culture, and to bringing a stronger sense of common purpose to our policies in support of the arts. The excellent work of Professor Elan Closs Stephens and her panel of experts recognised that devolution in Wales had inevitably led to a changed cultural landscape and that a greater degree of clarity, transparency and direction in setting arts policy and strategy was needed. The publication of the Stephens Report last year highlighted a number of areas where the Assembly Government and the Arts Council of Wales (ACW) could work more effectively and collaboratively together. I want to use our response to that Report to redefine the relationship between Government and our statutory advisers. We must focus our efforts on strengthening the arts in Wales – both at national and local level. [[I want to explore with local authorities how best we can develop the proposal to place authorities under a statutory duty to promote culture... Officials from my department are already working on proposals for doing this.]]  

One of my first actions as Minister was to establish the Arts Strategy Board, as recommended by the Stephens Report. I was very pleased by the positive outcomes of the Arts Strategy Board, which met for the first time last month. The input from a range of organisations that fund and support the arts, coming together and sitting around a table, will provide a clearer sense of strategic direction to the arts and should encourage more inclusive policy development. Each partner has its own role to play, from the pivotal role of ACW and the Welsh Local Government Association, to the potential that Arts & Business Wales has to lever more private sector funding for the sector.  

Budgetary constraints 

As a result of the UK Government’s Comprehensive Spending Review, the financial settlement to Wales for the next three years, while rising slightly, is the tightest since the National Assembly for Wales was established. I have fought and got a £36m addition to my budget for the Heritage portfolio, but at a time of tightening purse strings and the reduction in Lottery funding until 2012, working together with partners across the sector to maximise the investment and combined resources will also be of benefit to the arts.   Crucial to the delivery of arts policy in Wales will be the relationship between the Welsh Assembly Government and ACW. In the 60 years it has been in existence, the Arts Council has been instrumental in developing the vibrant arts sector that exists in Wales today. I have made it clear on a number of occasions that I support the arm’s length principle for arts funding.  

Arts for all 

The One Wales commitment to promoting arts and culture is built upon the desire to support and develop excellence, and to ensure maximum opportunity for our citizens to participate in a full range of arts and cultural activities. My first announcement as Minister was the establishment of an English language theatre for Wales. This is one of the most exciting cultural initiatives in our One Wales programme. It provides us with a wonderful opportunity to build on the success of Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru, the Welsh language national theatre for Wales. It also underlines our absolute commitment to developing theatre – and, indeed, all artforms – in both our national languages.   The Chair for the new company is being recruited, and the Assembly Government draft budget contains a commitment for an additional £2.25m for the establishment of the company. This will provide a new impetus and the even sharper creative vision that will be essential for a project of this nature. With an artistic director set to be appointed in 2008, I am looking forward to finally becoming the Minister who presides over the first production of the new company.  

Statutory responsibility 

One Wales makes clear the Government’s intention to strengthen the arts at local level. Since May 2007 the National Assembly for Wales has the power to create primary legislation in devolved areas. I want to explore with local authorities how best we can develop the proposal to place authorities under a statutory duty to promote culture. This needs to build on the wonderful work some authorities are already doing in this area. Officials from my department are already working on proposals for doing this.  

New vision – new strategy  

Finally, a new Culture Strategy for Wales will be developed over the next three years. ‘Creative Wales’ – Cymru’n Creu – which I was involved with as the first Chair of the National Assembly for Wales Culture committee, was a significant development. The new culture strategy for Wales will capitalise on the synergies that exist within my portfolio. Visit Wales, the tourism arm of the Welsh Assembly Government that is reviewing the Assembly Government’s Cultural Tourism Strategy in Wales, will look at how we can better use Wales’ rich and diverse culture to make our mark on the world stage, and support opportunities for Wales’s artistic producers to participate on the international stage.   Wales has for centuries defined herself as a cultural nation. Our national anthem signs the praises of Wales, ‘the land of famous poets and singers’. My aspiration for the next three years is to re-affirm this reputation, at home and abroad, and support the arts and culture so they continue to flourish in Wales.