§ Mr. Wrayasked the Minister for the Arts what steps Her Majesty's Government are taking to ensure that partial private sponsorship of the arts does not result in financial difficulties for art expressions not associated with establishment values.
§ Mr. LuceThe Government are committed to the maintenance of arts funding in real terms, and they are honouring this commitment. The distribution of funding is a matter for the Arts Council and other major bodies. There is no reason why any individual arts organisation should not be able to finance the growth of its activities by seeking to increase its income from other sources. Nor is it impossible for innovative art groups to obtain sponsorship.