All the Right Noises
The new Culture Secretary James Purnell has set out his vision for the arts today and there is no doubt he is making all the right noises, but what is particularly encouraging is his appointment of Brian McMaster to advise the DCMS on its relationship with the arts community. There is no one better placed than McMaster to do the job. Not only is he a council member of ACE and a very successful director of the Edinburgh International Festival, he is also very well respected in the arts world.
For the minister to say that he wants “the frank opinion of experts” is also encouraging, for there are very many - Nick Hytner springs to mind - who have strong opinions and the experience to back them up and who will be, no doubt, more than happy to share those opinions and experience with him. One hopes that the minister will not restrict his seeking for “frank opinions” just to Brian McMaster but will take advice from a wide range of people - something that, qute frankly, his predecessor was not famous for.
What encourages me most, however, is that the new minister not only has an genuine interest in the arts but is also one of the up-and-coming members of the government. He will be hungry for success in his new post as it will stand him in good stead as he climbs the parliamentary ladder.
It is good, too, to see the departure of David Lammy who, quite frankly, was more interested in pushing government dogma than fighting the corner for the arts. We haven’t had a real, genuine arts enthusiast at the DCMS since Chris Smith.
It is also a good thing that the 2012 Olympics will not be the kind of major distraction for Purnell that it was for Tessa Jowell, who seemed willing to sacrifice the arts and heritage (and even groundroots sport) before the Olympic flame. Now she is in a non-cabinet Olympics ministerial post, she will not be in a position to have a major effect on arts spending.
We know - if course we know: how could we not? - that the forthcoming delayed Comprehensive Spending Review will be, in Purnell’s word, “tough”, but I for one feel happier that we have someone at the DCMS who seems to have more interest in the arts than treating it as just another job. Let’s hope that he will be a more fierce fighter for the arts than she who has departed!