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Dateline: 18th November, 2007

Culture Minister Margaret Hodge

ACE Must Look Outwards

Arts Council England must be more outward looking, said culture minister Margaret Hodge at the Theatrical Management Association annual conference.

ACE, she said, has five key roles:

• It must be independent of government and not afraid to take risks, although it must be "publicly accountable and responsive"
• It must be "100% focused on artistic excellence and ... (have) the respect of the sector for its expertise and its knowledge of the arts"
• It should support companies which are well run
• It should help the development of the whole cultural sector, especially in the use of new technnology
• It should play "a stronger and more confident leadership role across the arts as a whole" and "look beyond (its) regularly funded organisations and work in partnership with voluntary arts and other organisations around the country, which support participation in the arts"

She added that she thinks that the Arts Council is moving in this direction, becoming "more outward looking, not just focused on its RFOs (Regularly Funded Organisations)."

She also warned the conference that the arts were "lucky" in the recent Comprehensive Spending Review. Future reviews, she said, may not be as generous and so the sector should be looking towards "private giving", although she ruled out tax breaks as an incentive.

"I can’t accept that the contribution to society of good and successful people depends on a tax break," she said. "I don’t think it’s about tax breaks, I do believe it’s about them feeling recognised by society."

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©Peter Lathan 2007