Campaign demands arts funding to avert ‘cultural catastrophe’

The Campaign for the Arts has launched a petition calling on the government to fulfil its pledge to more than double arts funding and to deliver at least £100m more annually by 2028/29 – promises made by Humza Yousaf last year.

It pointed to evidence recently submitted to the Scottish Parliament’s culture committee which “underlined the true scale of the funding crisis in Scotland’s arts sector”.

Museums Galleries Scotland told the committee that more than 45 museums and galleries are at risk of closure within 12 months.

Edinburgh’s festivals have also warned that Scotland’s cultural assets are now in a “perilously fragile” state.

On Monday, Creative Scotland said that uncertainty over the Scottish government’s budget had created “critical problems” for its Open Fund for Individuals, which supports artists, musicians, producers and writers in pursuing creative outlets.

The body originally expected to be able to grant £96m to arts projects, but had to whittle this down and currently expects to be able to distribute only £40m.

It has also decided to delay opening applications for two other funds for young people – Access to Music Making and Strengthening Youth Music.