Page 3043 - Week 12 - Tuesday, 17 November 1992
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From the beginning the council chose to work to a strategy of a preferred future for the cultural activities in the ACT. It is seeking to set a vision of what kind of cultural life the Territory should have, and then setting out to achieve that vision. The council is considering how it can deal with matters such as broad cultural planning issues, cultural industry development in the ACT and how best to present a positive cultural image of Canberra. It is working to link its activities with other areas both within and external to the ACT Government. The first major step in this work will be a completely new and quite significant policy document which will be released in February next year. These new policies will shape the Government's future support for cultural development and I am delighted to note that there has been a very high level of community involvement in the policy development process.
While financial grants to the cultural community are undoubtedly important, the vision for the Cultural Council is far more than a glorified grants body. The council is looking beyond the grant program to other areas of government and the private sector that can have an impact on cultural activity. I would like members to note that the Australia Council estimates that throughout Australia governments provide only 10 per cent of the overall support to the cultural industry. The remainder comes from earned income, the community and the private sector. This is not to say that grants are not a critical part of the Government's efforts in supporting cultural activities in the ACT. The Government is committed to sustainable funding to cultural activities and in the most recent budget the funds to the arts grants program were increased by a 2 per cent inflation factor, $51,000 to assist artists and administrative staff with compulsory superannuation and a further $20,000 to enhance the ACT Literary Award.
I would like to turn now to the specific grant decisions. Applications for almost $3m were received, for around $1.5m in available funds. After careful consideration I have accepted the Cultural Council's recommendation for the funding of 17 operational grants totalling $1,047,000 and 18 major arts projects totalling $365,000, giving a total of $1.4m. For the information of members, I have tabled a copy of the list of grant recipients. I can assure you that they cover the full gamut of arts activities in the ACT. The operational grants category offers support for the annual program of key arts organisations which provide an ongoing service to the ACT. The major projects, for grants above $10,000 category, offer support for large, one-off arts activities. As previously mentioned, grant applicants will receive additional funds for payment of superannuation to artists and administrative staff.
These grant decisions demonstrate a comprehensive addressing of the competing bids across the various artforms. Inevitably, of course, grant applications are not always able to be met. I wish we could do more. The operational and major projects categories, while the two largest of the cultural grants, are but two of a number of categories which constitute the arts and special events grant program. I announced grants in the special events and festivals category earlier this year. Applications in the remaining categories are currently being assessed and I expect to receive the recommendations from the Cultural Council by early next year.
In focusing on the future, the Cultural Council is looking to 1993 to be a year for change. Let me assure you that these changes will be far-reaching. Past practices, where organisations have come to expect a certain level of support, will not necessarily be maintained. One clear message I have given the Cultural
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