§ Mr. Peter AinsworthTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) if he will make a statement on the present relationship between the Royal Opera House and its principal private sponsors; [59933]
(2) if he will make a statement on the future of the Royal Opera House. [59932]
§ Mr. Chris Smith[holding answer 16 November 1998]: The Government are wholly committed to a secure long-term future for opera and ballet of the highest quality in the redeveloped Royal Opera House. Convent Garden, post-reopening, will be a magnificent building, one of the most advanced and exciting venues for lyric theatre anywhere, and will provide a fitting stage for the dedicated artists of the Royal Ballet and Royal Opera. The building work at Convent Garden is now well advanced. We expect the House to reopen in late 1999, on time and on budget.
The Government are determined that the reopened House should be used to improve access to the arts, in particular through work to develop new audiences and education programmes, and to address fully the recommendations made by Sir Richard Eyre in his recent review of the future of lyric theatre in London.
In September, the Royal Opera House Board announced a radical strategy to put the House's affairs on a proper footing. The Government fully support this strategy. Constructive discussions have taken place between the management and trade unions towards flexible new working arrangements and I hope final agreement can be reached soon.
The future success of the House will depend on a close partnership of public and private investment. A key element of this will be the continued support of the private and corporate donors, whose great generosity and commitment to the House have not always been properly recognised. I pay tribute to their passionate support for the House and for the arts in this country. The personal involvement of the donors and their capacity for raising funds from the private sector should be warmly applauded.