Following weeks of pressure from the arts sector, the government has announced a £1.57 billion support package in a bid to save the sector.
Oliver Dowden, the culture secretary, has said that the loans are intended to preserve the country’s “crown jewels” in addition to local venues. Theatres, galleries, and museums are among those who will benefit from the package which has been referred to as "the biggest ever one-off investment in UK culture" by the government.
Those who wish to apply for the grants and loans will have to prove their contribution to the country’s overall economic growth. The government has said that the allocation of loans will be determined by these funding applications, "alongside expert independent figures from the sector".
Of the total sum, £1.15 billion will be reserved for institutions in England, divided into £880 million worth of grants, and £270 million in repayable loans. The government has promised that the loans will be issued “on generous terms".
Devolved administrations in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, will be supported with £33 million, £97 million and £59 million respectively.
The remaining £220 million will be divided between heritage construction and infrastructure projects which were delayed as a result of the pandemic, and for national cultural institutions in England including the English Heritage Trust.
Boris Johnson has said that the money “will help safeguard the sector for future generations, ensuring arts groups and venues across the UK can stay afloat".
According to Julian Knight, the Conservative chairman of the House of Commons culture select committee, the promise of loans is but a first step.
"This money is welcome and should take some out of the danger zone, if only temporarily," he noted. "But to secure their long-term future there needs to be a targeted sector deal, possibly involving more generous tax breaks."
For the shadow culture secretary, Jo Stevens, the packaged came "too little, too late" for many organisations who have already been forced to close or lay off staff.
