NOT MY PROBLEM…

The culture minister, Ed Vaizey, has refused to intervene in local authority funding cuts being made to arts organisations and libraries across the UK and said many of the problems were down to long-term breakdowns in communication. Leaders of arts organisations have gathered in London for the second annual State of the Arts conference, organised by the RSA and Arts Council England. Many of them are going through torrid times, facing cuts on many fronts, including from local authorities. Somerset county council, for example, will meet next Wednesday to agree a budget that has a 100% cut in arts spending. On top of that hundreds of libraries – 20 out of 43 in Oxfordshire – are threatened with closure. But Vaizey said it was not his place to intervene. "Local government knows its local people far better than central government and while I might not agree with every decision made by a local authority, I respect their right to make that decision themselves.”