BC artists facing unprecedented funding cuts

When the BC provincial budget update was announced on September 1st, artists discovered that they were facing another round of cuts. BC MLA and NDP Culture Critic Spencer Herbert stated in a newsletter to his supporters that he estimates the cut to arts and culture to be 92 percent. He writes, “The BC Liberal’s are cutting arts and culture funding from approximately 47.8 million in 2008/09 down to 3.7 million in 2010/11.” Previously, the government had also frozen multi-year Direct Access gaming grants but has now reinstated this source of funding. The budget update has been surrounded by much confusion and details are still emerging as artists rally to find ways to cope with the situation. Tourism, Culture and the Arts Minister Kevin Krueger has so far been unavailable for comment.