7. Statement by the Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism: Creative Wales

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:25 pm on 30 April 2019.

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Photo of Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas Independent 6:25, 30 April 2019

(Translated)

I'm more than happy to appear before the culture committee or any other committee so that you can scrutinise in more detail how we are developing our proposals on Creative Wales, but perhaps I should respond to two points at the end of that series of questions. First of all: there is no mention in this statement about fine arts—one of my major interests, as you will know. My very creative constituent, David Nash, has an excellent exhibition opening in the wonderful museum that we have just down the road—that will be opening later this week. I haven't mentioned fine arts because that is the responsibility of the arts council, and that will remain the case. The same is true of literature. Of course, there is a link between literature as a narrative and a story that will then appear as part of the story of the creative industries, but we must continue with the structures, such as Literature Wales and the provision for the fine arts, along with the creative industries, which mainly deal with creative aspects of the creative industries. And that's the difference between the creative industries and the artistic arts activities that I've just referred to.

In terms of broadcasting, well, how many times as Minister in this place do I have to say that it's not the policy of the Welsh Government to devolve broadcasting, and the reason for that is that, in these days, when culture is all digital, there is no meaning to the devolution of broadcasting in its traditional sense, because all that will do is to cause a distraction in terms of the creative development that should be happening across the digital sector and the various different media, and I'm not going to pursue that any further.

But as far as the development of Creative Wales is concerned, there is this perception that the way to develop policy is to create strategies and to create a master plan document that puts it in place. I don't share that view at all. I have spent the past year discussing in detail and consulting with the creative industries and seeing their work in detail, so that we produce something that will be acceptable to people within the industry. I'm surprised to hear you say that people don't know where to go for funding, because they are going to the very same places that they've always gone—to Ffilm Cymru and the Screen Alliance Wales. The funding is available there and through Government. And as I said earlier, we have funded Un Bore Mercher/Keeping Faith 2, which is currently being broadcast, and we will continue to fund those developments. But when Creative Wales comes into being, and I've answered on the size of the budget—it's around £30 million—there will be an independent chair, and he or she will be appointed through the usual public appointments system. There will be a chief executive appointed before then, and then there will be a body about the same size as Cadw. So, the constitutional comparison, if you are looking at the issue of governance, or a response in terms of governance, is: it will be similar to Cadw. But rather than being Cadw, it will be creative.