BC arts cuts said to take province back to "prehistoric" levels
A column in the Georgia Straight brings into sharp relief the drastic nature of the cuts that the BC government is imposing on arts and culture that has small magazine publishers in the province reeling. Ellen Woodsworth, a community activist who is seeking to be a candidate for deputy mayor of Vancouver city council under the COPE municipal party, says in her commentary, in part
Before the cuts, arts-and-culture expenditures represented only 0.5 percent of the budget. Now, the B.C. Liberals are expected to cut arts-and-culture investment from approximately $47.8 million in 2008-09 down to about $3.7 million in 2010-11, reducing it to 1971 levels.
That takes us back to pre-Expo and—some would argue—prehistoric levels of funding.
posted by D. B. Scott at
11:06 am
4 Comments:
"prehistoric" level of art? Cave paintings? LOL...
A correction and a comment: Ellen Woodsworth is the deputy major of Vancouver.
The cuts to arts funding in BC, will amount to a 50% cut in 2009/2010 and 90% cut in 2010/2011. The total amount the cuts will save the province of BC, 1/20 of 1% of the total budget. The impact on arts in BC will be devastating. Already, arts organizations are beginning to fail and more will follow.
This is the work of a spiteful and ignorant government. A government that lied, denying there would be any significant budget cuts during their campaign for re-election.
Thanks for your correction; I have amended the post.
It is only just beginning to sink in outside of BC just what a disaster these cuts represent. It is like the Mike Harris years in Ontario, only worse.
Perhaps the Winter Olympics perky slush funding towards arts groups could have been allocated more prudently and with more foresight.
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