£10m for theatres is only 'baby steps' to arts recovery
The Scottish Government’s £10m crisis fund for theatres and venues has been welcomed by the Scottish Greens, but much more will be needed to recover Scotland’s decimated culture sector.
Speaking ahead of a Scottish Greens live discussion with artists on the future of the sector, the party’s culture spokesperson Ross Greer said: “This funding is very welcome, but it will only buy venues more time, not prevent their closure entirely.
"Theatres and venues of all sizes in almost every community in Scotland have been devastated by this crisis and face an uncertain future while social distancing continues. We risk a post-Covid normal with cultural deserts across much of Scotland if venues close on the scale we’re currently facing.
“£10m will buy venues and their staff time, which is vital with so many jobs on the line and the furlough scheme being wound down later this year but with the number of venues now in crisis, this amount will not go far.
“The UK Government has done embarrassingly little to protect the arts during the pandemic compared with other countries. There is widespread international recognition that education, health and culture are key to wellbeing, but the latter has been largely ignored by the Conservatives so far, despite making up a huge share of our economy. If Scotland is going to take a different approach we need to step up, quickly.”