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Quangos Vanish

The Arts Council of England will appoint regional officers to replace
the ten regional arts boards. Chairman Gerry Robinson’s efforts
to replace the regional boards have met with sheer opposition from
the supposedly ‘autonomous’ quangoids. Local authorities
are to have a stronger say in the new regional councils that replace
the boards. These will determine the allocation of funds within
their areas. There will also be a knock-on effect at headquarters,
involving a staff contraction of 210 down to 130 members. The regional
boards actually have some 420 staff themselves, of whom a significant
proportion will likewise go. Culture Secretary, Tessa Jowell, commends
this ‘excellent blueprint’, which offers through the economies
a further 8 million to go on the direct funding of arts. 252 million
of funding (2001/2) will rise to 337 million (2003/4) from the
Department for Culture, Media, and Sport against strong competition.

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