Festivals warn Scotland's cultural assets have been left 'perilously fragile' by cuts

Organisers say at least £5.5 million is needed to secure the future of Edinburgh’s major events after they have seen the value of their public funding plummet by 40 per cent over the last 14 years.

The Scottish Parliament’s culture committee has been warned that the country is at risk of “considerable talent and knowledge” being lost to other countries due to a lack of investment in the arts in Scotland.

Festivals Edinburgh - which represents events such as the International Festival, Fringe, Hogmanay, and the city's book, science, jazz and film festivals - has called on the Scottish Government to "accelerate" the roll-out of a promised £100m for the arts industry.

It has suggested the government has focused on spending “substantial sums in one-off sporting events for benefits that cannot be sustained” rather than investing properly in Edinburgh’s values, which were valued at around £407 million for the city’s economy last year.

The Fringe Society, which oversees the running of Scotland's biggest cultural event, wants the government to ensure resources are targeted at organisations which are currently "living hand to mouth."

It previously accused the government of putting its world-leading status at risk by letting the event “fall through the cracks” of funding support.

Edinburgh’s annual festivals are believed to have been on standstill funding of around £11 million since 2009.

Earlier this month, Scottish culture secretary Angus Robertson promised that new money would be secured for festivals across Scotland to allow them to “flourish and maximise their contribution to Scotland.”

However national arts agency Creative Scotland, which funds festivals, venues and organisations, has warned that it faces have to make “difficult decisions” over £87.4m worth of applications for long-term support unless there is an urgent roll-out of the promised new funding.

The national arts agency has raised the prospect of significant job losses and a reduction in cultural provision if it is left on standstill funding itself, and warned that Scottish culture is facing the prospect of years of “managed decline” unless there is a rethink.

The latest warnings from the festivals have emerged in a new dossier for Holyrood’s culture committee, which has had mounting evidence of a funding crisis across Scotland’s cultural landscape over the last two years.

Scottish arts industry body Culture Counts, which represents more than 70 arts organisations, has told MSPs that "the crisis facing Scotland’s culture sector is an immediate one” and has suggested the £100m pledge is at risk of becoming a “hollow promise” if standstill funding continues.

In her report, Festivals Edinburgh director Julia Amour said: “Investment should be prioritised to sustain and develop this infrastructure, with a focus on cultural assets that have a multiplier effect.

”This will enable Scotland to maximise connectivity and scale across local, national and international opportunities.

She said the period of austerity budgeting from 2010 was exacerbated by pandemic losses and the cost of living crisis, leaving assets “perilously fragile the length and breadth of the country”.

"For Edinburgh’s Festivals, expectations from multiple stakeholders have increased while the real terms value of public support has reduced by over 40 per cent between 2010 and 2024 – so that an additional £5.5m is needed to secure the future public value of the festivals as a national powerhouse for creative development and distribution, supporting thousands of creatives based in Scotland and cultural participation by over 350,000 Scottish residents.

"Specific schemes that augment artists’ livelihoods through helping them find wider audiences, such as the Scottish Government’s Festivals Expo Fund, are also needed to sustain creative communities across Scotland who contribute to wider wellbeing, learning and social developments in their areas.

"These examples point to the need emphasised by Culture Counts to accelerate the reinvestment of £100m per annum in Scotland’s cultural ecosystem as quickly as possible.”

The government has pledged to allocation an additional £25m for the cultural sector in the next financial year, however the Fringe Society said this would not even begin to address the serious financial issues affecting the cultural sector, saying it had suffered “layers of reduced investment over many years.”

The Fringe Society’s dossier states: “A serious consideration of how the £100m is invested in a shorter time frame to accelerate recovery and grow the capacity for seeking further investment must be a priority, as Scotland stands to lose considerable talent and knowledge to other countries or other sectors.

“Invested thoughtfully, it should return a significant value to the creative and wider economy of Scotland, but is equally easily wasted in filling gaps and patching holes, rather than a strategic investment in the future of Scotland’s creative ecology and economy.

It called for a “seriously considered response for those organisations who live hand to mouth in a highly competitive funding landscape in Scotland”.

It added: ,”Despite significant return socially, economically and culturally, year on year – the Fringe is a stand-out example of this but is not alone in falling through the cracks of the current disjointed funding approach in Scotland.

“There is a need to reconsider the perception of creative work as subsidy when it is often investment that supports artists and offers a strong return long term to the economy. Investment should consider the impact of regular major events and how these are underpinned to be more sustainable and offer a greater return on investment through employment, skills, access and participation.

A spokesperson for the government said: “The Scottish Government already provides significant funding to Creative Scotland each year and will continue to do so. We have so far distributed £57.578 million this year to Creative Scotland.

“This is the most challenging budget to be delivered under devolution. Scotland already faced a precarious financial situation with high inflation putting significant pressure on households, the economy and public finances.

“As is normal practice, money allocated in the Scottish Government budget for 2024/2025 must undergo due diligence before being released."