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CCA Bulletin 52/08
December 18, 2008
The Cultural Sector – Part of the Solution for Economic Stimulus
Just the Facts
The Canadian Conference of the Arts (CCA) has sent today to the minister of Finance, the Hon. James Flaherty, as well as to all Opposition parties, a submission where it stakes the arts and culture sector as a sound place to invest for the economic stimulus sought by the government to counter the impacts of the current crisis on Canadian citizens.
Earlier this year, the CCA submitted to the Standing Committee on Finance a pre-budget submission. That submission was written before many of the cuts to arts programs could be confirmed and certainly before the threat of a recession challenged our collective best assumptions about the stability of the Canadian economy.
Tell me more
The intention of today’s submission is to indicate how the arts and culture sector can be part of the solution to the economic stimulus strategy. Given the structures already in place, the sector can quickly mobilize the talents and dedication of artists, creators and arts professionals and of other sectors of the economy to achieve the objectives of creating jobs, increasing economic and creative activity, while at the same time enriching our sense of Canadian identity, enhancing our image abroad and supporting our other international trade objectives.
The Board of Governors of the CCA recommends that the following measures be included in the next federal budget:
- As part of an Employment Strategy, the CCA recommends that the government invest at least $ 1.5 million a year for the next five years in the creation of a mentorship/internship program for the cultural sector. The government has various options, including the Cultural Human Resources Council and a number of National Arts Service Organizations, to ensure this investment in job creation and in the future development of the sector is administered in the most efficient and immediate ways.
- To develop markets at home and abroad for the cultural sector, the CCA recommends that the federal government invest an additional $ 40 million per year into the expansion of the capacity and mandate of the Canada Council for the Arts Audience and Market Development Program.
- As part of the Employment Strategy, the CCA recommends that the Department of Canadian Heritage be provided with an additional $ 100 million to invest in the Cultural Spaces program to allow more communities and organizations to proceed with their capital development plans. This investment should be an annual increase for the next four years.
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To support the shift to the creative economy, the CCA recommends the investment of $ 5 million per year for the next four years into the design and implementation of a national cultural research strategy. The strategy could be managed through the Department of Canadian Heritage or through a non-governmental organization.
What can I do?
The consultation launched by the minister of Finance ends at midnight on January 9, less than three weeks before Budget day. For more information on the consultation, you can go here. You can present your submission and that of your organization, or simply support the CCA’s submission by going here.
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