Page 2983 - Week 08 - Thursday, 15 August 2019
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Another static accountability indicator is the percentage of tenants of community arts facilities who are satisfied with the management of the facilities. The target of 80 per cent was achieved in the last two years and is set for 2019-20. But it is down from 85 per cent, which was the target in 2016-17. This suggests that the government is complacent about the management of these facilities and is not seeking to improve its practices or entertain any notion of innovation.
Further, if the government cannot achieve a target, it simply lowers it so that it can. It does not try harder or smarter to achieve improved outcomes. This complacency continues in the satisfaction targets set and achieved at 80 per cent over the past three years for the management of grants administered by artsACT.
Why is it that the Labor-Greens government cannot aspire to greater heights? Why can’t the Labor-Greens government embrace the concepts of efficiency, effectiveness and innovation? Why can’t this Labor-Greens government push the envelope rather than just shuffle paper?
As we continue down the list of accountability indicators, we see the same approach adopted even for the number of attendees at programs delivered by arts funded organisations. The target of 350,000 was set and achieved in each of the last three years. It has been set at the same level for 2019-20. Despite Canberra’s population growth, this government does not think, or hope or expect that any more people will engage with arts programs. I doubt I could easily find an arts organisation that returns anything but increasing figures for public engagement in its programs. Why is the Labor-Greens government satisfied with zero growth in public engagement in arts programs?
In the 2018-19 budget the government discontinued another accountability indicator. It was the target for the number of engagement activities with the community on arts and cultural matters. It consistently was set and achieved for the previous four years. The government’s excuse for discontinuing this target was: “Due to the changing nature of the engagement undertaken, the number of engagement activities is likely to vary.” If you are going to engage with people in a meaningful and effective way, of course it will vary from year to year. But is it beyond the wit of art bureaucrats in the ACT to come up with innovative ways of engaging with people, and to measure that?
The annual variations will establish a trend, hopefully a growing one, for activities in which the government engages with arts organisations and the people who participate in them. But setting a static target of four per year and then discontinuing it altogether says to me that this government no longer talks to the ACT arts sector. Why is the Labor-Greens government shutting itself away from the arts community?
As in many areas in which this government is failing to deliver services to its long-suffering taxpayers, such as health, education and transport, this government is failing to deliver on the arts. Despite what this government and this minister tell you, the ACT arts community continues to struggle to make ends meets. The arts community continues to struggle to be heard. In spite of it all, the arts community continues to do amazing things, not just artistically, but economically and socially.
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