ACE Chairman Nicolas Serota: 'Talent Exists Everywhere Rather Than Just in London'

Sir Nicolas Serota has defended the decisions made after the Arts Council England announced its 2022 funding decisions on Friday (4 November).

The Donmar Warehouse, Newbury's Watermill Theatre and Oldham Coliseum were among the organisations that lost all their funding, as companies such as Pegasus Opera Company, which champions underrepresented communities and talent from diverse backgrounds in the opera world, celebrated being awarded £200,000 in annual funding for the 2023 to 2026 round.

Sir Nicolas Serota said in The Times on Saturday (5 November) "I think what's incredibly difficult about it is the realisation that if you take money away from an organisation, there is a chance that it will close. None of the organisations from which we're taking away money have failed. They're all in business, they're attracting audiences, they're doing good work. These organisations are part of their community, they are employing people, they're giving pleasure."

There are some big losers in the sharpest cuts to funding in the capital in a generation. The English National Opera, The Donmar Warehouse, the Hampstead Theatre, The Gate Theatre in Notting Hill and the Barbican have all had their Arts Council grants axed completely, as part of a £16 million-a-year transfer of resources to institutions outside London.

Overall the rebalancing of the £446 million budget will mean a 16% cut in money spent in London and a 22% increase in investment in rural areas.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is warning of further cuts, but Serota warned there was no scope for further to the arts. He said "We've seen austerity applied to the arts and the arts have been incredibly resilient, but how far can you stretch this rubber band? I think it will snap if we see serious cuts. There's a degree of fragility in the arts world now that wasn't there three years ago before the pandemic."

The creative industries currently contribute more than £100 billion a year to the UK economy.

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