Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson, Chair of the LGA’s Culture, Tourism and Sport Board responds to the Government’s announcement in the Spending Review of funding for the UK’s culture, tourism and sport sectors.
Responding to the Government’s announcement in the Spending Review of funding for the UK’s culture, tourism and sport sectors, Chair of the LGA’s Culture, Tourism and Sport Board, Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson, said:
“We are pleased that Government has recognised the vital role cultural, tourism and sporting infrastructure can play in our national recovery from COVID-19, and responded to LGA calls for previous commitments for capital investment in museums and libraries to be honoured.
“This funding will provide immediate support to boost these sectors as they work to regain solid footing after the last 18 months and the inclusion of funding for Heritage Action Zones is extremely positive news for our high streets and heritage areas which have been transformed by this funding.
“However, to deliver maximum impact on these funding streams, it is important that government and its arms-length bodies commit to strategic working with councils to ensure we are making optimal use of our combined funding at a place-based level and have a shared vision for levelling up infrastructure across the country.
“There also remains a particular challenge around ageing leisure facilities where the funding demands required to meet our climate objectives and the needs of communities will exceed the funding made available through these investments. Over the longer term, it will be important to ensure that councils can continue to access decarbonisation funding to improve their leisure estates.”
Notes
The funding announced today includes:
- £850 million to restore and upgrade some of the country’s most popular institutions such as London’s V&A museum, Tate Liverpool and the Imperial War Museum,
- £52 million in new funding for museums and cultural and sporting bodies to support recovery from COVID-19 with an additional £49 million in 2024-25
- £760 million to fund football pitches, tennis courts and youth facilities
- A package of tax and business rates reliefs for the cultural and creative industries, hospitality, and leisure sectors.