Will Canada Council be required to cut $9 million from its base spending?
For literary and cultural magazines the news about the Canada Council for the Arts facing a possible 5% cut is disturbing. This is a possible -- some would say likely -- outcome of the Government of Canada’s Strategic Review program.
This is a process whereby each government department in turn is subjected to a review of its direct program spending to ensure that the money is being spent effectively and efficiently. In fact, what it usually means is that the department is asked to identify 5% of lower priority, lower-performing aspects of their spending -- which is than lopped off and reallocated within the department or elsewhere in government.
For the Canada Council, this could mean a $9 million cut to its base spending. This is particularly ironic for literary and cultural magazines since, having gone through a similar strategic review, the Department of Canadian Heritage seems intent on discontinuing Canada Periodical Fund grants to magazines with less than 5,000 annual circulation. The argument made is that these small titles are more appropriately served by...the Canada Council.
(The Canada Council recently went through a separate special examination by the Auditor General, who found that the Council's systems and practices had contributed to its success and showed "no significant deficiencies".)
This is a process whereby each government department in turn is subjected to a review of its direct program spending to ensure that the money is being spent effectively and efficiently. In fact, what it usually means is that the department is asked to identify 5% of lower priority, lower-performing aspects of their spending -- which is than lopped off and reallocated within the department or elsewhere in government.
For the Canada Council, this could mean a $9 million cut to its base spending. This is particularly ironic for literary and cultural magazines since, having gone through a similar strategic review, the Department of Canadian Heritage seems intent on discontinuing Canada Periodical Fund grants to magazines with less than 5,000 annual circulation. The argument made is that these small titles are more appropriately served by...the Canada Council.
(The Canada Council recently went through a separate special examination by the Auditor General, who found that the Council's systems and practices had contributed to its success and showed "no significant deficiencies".)
Labels: Canada Council
posted by D. B. Scott at
4:07 pm
2 Comments:
The Strategic Review process basically punishes departments for being fiscally responsible. You runs as tight a ship as possible, then you are put under review and told you must find a way to cut 5%. If you had managed your finances less responsibly, that 5% would be a lot easier to find.
I say this as a general comment, without knowing the particulars of the Canada Council's budget.
More bad news for arts magazines... who will be left standing after all this?
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home