§ Mr. FisherTo ask the Minister for the Arts how much his Department currently spends in supporting the non-professional arts.
§ Mr. Luce[holding answer 6 November 1989]: The Office of Arts and Libraries does not fund arts organisations directly: that is the responsibility of the Arts Council and the Regional Arts Associations. The council's policy is not to fund amateur activities which, by their nature, are largely self-supporting. It does provide professional support to some amateur activity, as well as funding festivals and other events which may include some amateur work, but it is not possible to cost this accurately.