Arts & Culture
Foreword
The Green Party/Comhaontas Glas's contribution to the formation of local and national arts/culture and heritage policies is two fold. Firstly, why public money should be spent on certain areas. Secondly, what art/culture/heritage can mean in a sustainable society and economy.This policy seeks to bring debate to a mindset prior to the seminal Price/Waterhouse/Cooper/Lybrand report (1994).The Green Party/Comhaontas Glas recognises that arts/culture/heritage have a value extrinsic of the monetary value of the works created. The arts in this policy are not sectional defined. However, implicit in the way the arts are described we include both popular and high culture, those who make art and those who are the audience within our definition. For the Green Party/Comhaontas Glas heritage can create a sense of place fusing old and new cultures, creating a national memory bank creating dialogue within communities and across generations. For this policy we have concentrated on this aspect of heritage. The definition of culture used for this policy is in line with that adopted in 1982 by the UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies "In its widest sense, culture may now be said to be the whole complex of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features that characterise a society or group. It includes not only the arts and letters, but also modes of life, the fundamental rights of human beings, value systems, traditions and beliefs".
Introduction
Quality of life is a major issue of concern for the Green Party . There will be increasing time for leisure in the future. The arts promote the engagement by people in activities that are at once enjoyable and educational. We value equally the art/cultural activities that people take for self-improvement and leisure and those undertaken by professional artists. Recent research has found that partaking in arts/culture leads to a longer life span. Increased public spending on the arts will save money spent on health costs.
As a nation we should conserve and develop the best practice in the arts. As a political party we have obvious links with the political and cultural ideas that lead to the birth of community arts practice. In government we would support and enable the community arts to thrive. However, this would be done within the Green concept of " stewardship" to sustain quality and facilitate access.
We value the role that arts/culture/heritage have in the spiritual and physical health of the nation extrinsic of the monetary value of the works created. The GP/CG want to build a sustainable society and economy. This involves vision and long-term planning. As we consider cultural expression and engagement as basic human rights, we will look to 1% of GDP to be spent on the arts/culture/heritage sectors. The Green Party /Comhaontas glas believe that if the vibrancy of the arts/culture/heritage sectors was included as a quality of life index, it would bring yet more inward investment to the country, and cut public spending on health and vandalism.
We believe that cultural expression and engagement are basic human rights. The creativity of our citizens is a key national resource, vital to the individual?s quality of life and to society's well being. It is through engagement with culture in its widest sense that people are enabled and communities strengthened . Given a voice through the arts, people will understand and appreciate the richness and diversity of cultural difference and thus bring us closer to a world of peace, non-violence and disarmament.
The Green Party believe it is time to have more than 15x government departments. The Arts/Culture/Heritage area is important. It deserves a separate department . Supporting traditional arts and arts/culture/heritage ventures in languages other than in English is seen by the Green Party as part of an Arts Council Brief to support and sustain cultural diversity. As we believe that the Irish Language is central to Irish identity we recommend that the Department of the Gaeltacht should have a separate department too.
We seek statutory legislation for local authorities to provide for the arts, provided that there is partnership between them and central government. The Arts Council would continue in its role as advisor to the government and to local authorities. The "arms length principle" would continue through the selection of independent personnel to work with the Arts Council from the arts sector, voluntary and community arts sector , education, and industry and unions representing the cultural and heritage sectors.
Provided that there is partnership between the local authorities, central government and the Arts Council , we favour the funding of the arts through local authorities. National institutions would be funded centrally. We will seek to sustain quality and facilitate access. Disability should be no barrier to cultural access. We will prioritise capital funded ventures with the aim of increasing participation in the arts by amateurs and professionals.
Heritage can create a sense of place fusing old and new cultures, creating a national memory bank creating dialogue within communities and across generations. In an inter-cultural world an appreciation of heritage will create dialogue across cultures and religions. This especially important within the context of the "Good Friday Agreement".