§ 52. Mr. Tony Banksasked the Minister for the Arts what progress the Arts Council is making in directing 4 per cent. of its expenditure to Afro-Caribbean and Asian arts.
§ The Minister for the Arts (Mr. Richard Luce)Responses to the Arts Council's plan are now being received and will be discussed at the council's meeting in July.
§ Mr. BanksI welcome the Arts Council's initiative, but is the Minister aware that no new money is involved and that therefore its impact will be somewhat lessened? Is he further aware that the Arts Council has just given a £100,000 revenue grant to the black arts centre at the Round House, which is now in a critical position because of its loss of GLC funding?
Will the Minister give £1 million capital grant towards the £8.5 million required to allow the Round House to flourish as a centre for Afro-Caribbean and Asian arts in London? Is he aware that the black community cannot raise that sum through the business community? The Minister may care to reply in the affirmative during the debate on the arts on Friday.
§ Mr. LuceThe hon. Gentleman asks two questions. First, the resources for the minority ethnic groups have to come out of the Arts Council's total budget. I think that it has made a sensible decision in deciding to set aside 4 per cent. of its total expenditure for that purpose. It will be distributed to areas where the ethnic minority groups are the strongest.
Secondly, the Arts Council has given £100,000 revenue funding to give the Round House time to decide, in conjunction with the London Residuary Body, how to deal with its redevelopment plans in the long term. The Round House is to be given transitional funding to enable it to decide on long-term planning.