Cuts to culture funding will undermine the government’s cultural policy goals

Funding for arts and culture will decrease in 2024 under the government’s budget proposal. The cuts will be based on the Government Programme as well as changes to the offset to compensate for the fall in gambling proceeds. In total, culture funding will be reduced by more than 8 million euros.

Appropriations for culture will decrease when certain fixed-term and one-off sources of funding come to an end, the most significant being structural support for the cultural and creative sectors allocated for the post COVID-19 recovery (overall impact: -6 million euros).

The cuts will apply to grants and subsidies distributed by both the Ministry of Education and Culture and the Arts Promotion Centre Finland (Taike). A funding reduction of approximately 5%, i.e. 1.3 million euros, has been proposed for Taike grants and subsidies compared to 2023. According to the information currently available, the cuts will apply to operational subsidies for communities, special subsidies, targeted subsidies and regional grants.

Cuts to Taike’s funding will be a serious blow for the visual arts sector. Targeted subsidies, for example, are an important source of support for visual artists, and many visual arts communities depend on Taike funding. Visual arts communities have minimal resources at their disposal to maintain the already fragile structures that support visual arts and to improve the accessibility of art regionally. Visual arts communities currently only receive about a tenth of Taike’s community subsidies. Taike will decide on how the cuts are allocated.

“Instead of cuts, visual arts communities desperately need investment to create growth models and promote, amongst other things, the sale, export and digitalisation of art,” says Annukka Vähäsöyrinki, Director of the Artists’ Association of Finland.

The cuts will not extend to artist grants, artist pensions and display grants, which are protected under separate legislation. Artist grants and pensions will be subject to the usual index increase.

State grants distributed by the Ministry of Education and Culture will also be subject to cuts next year. For example, a total of 10,484,000 euros was allocated to the activities of national arts and culture communities this year, while the budgeted appropriation for next year is 9,765,000 euros.

Looking at the big picture, the cuts will primarily affect the independent arts and culture field. The index increases that will be applied to the central government transfer system are lower than expected.

It is worrying that the Government Programme forecasts even greater cuts to the Ministry of Education and Culture’s grants over the coming years: 25 million euros in 2025 and 50 million euros in 2026, after which the level will be decided in a mid-term policy review. The cultural sector will also be affected by the index freezes on central government transfers to local government, which may weaken municipalities’ capacity to support culture, as well as cuts in social security and housing benefit, which will affect the finances of many who work in the cultural sector.

“Prime Minister Orpo’s Government Programme aptly states that growth in the cultural sector supports the whole of society, strengthening wellbeing, creativity and sustainability. Cuts in the culture sector are disappointing and also at odds with the government’s cultural policy goals. Freezing index increases on central government transfers to local government and cutting social security will have severe cascade effects on the cultural field. It’s to be hoped that the government cancels future cuts and creates other support instruments so that the goals stated in the Government Programme, such as accelerating the growth of the cultural sector, can actually be achieved,” says Vähäsöyrinki.
 

Threatened cuts:

The Ministry of Education and Culture

Culture and art are subject to a cut of approximately 7 million euros in the Ministry of Education and Culture’s budget.

Of this amount, 4 million euros are cuts under the Government Programme. According to the Artists’ Association, none of these cuts are directly related to the visual arts field.

The remaining reduction, approximately 3 million euros, will result from reduced compensation for the decline in proceeds from gambling activities. It is not yet known how they will be allocated, but cuts to the visual arts sector may affect activities such as:

- Evolving cultural policy

The Ministry of Education and Culture distributes a general subsidy to communities for artistic and cultural activities that operate across Finland. The subsidy supports prerequisites for activities that are important to cultural policy.

Orpo’s Government Programme explains why this should not be cut: Growth in the cultural sector supports the whole society, strengthening its wellbeing, creativity and sustainability, and we will design schemes that fuel growth in the audio-visual sector and in other sectors, such as literature and music.

- The visibility of Finnish culture across the world

The Ministry of Education and Culture distributes state grants for the activities of Finnish cultural institutes and special subsidies for the promotion of cultural exports. 

Orpo’s Government Programme explains why these should not be cut: We will create better opportunities for Finnish arts and creative companies to gain international recognition and reinforce the role of the cultural sector in our country branding.

- Artistic and cultural events

The Ministry of Education and Culture distributes grants for the activities of national and international artistic and cultural events.

Orpo’s Government Programme explains why these should not be cut: Cultural and artistic events create both economic and intellectual added value around them.
 

The Arts Promotion Centre Finland

The level of the reduction, approximately 3 million euros, is explained by the fact that the compensation for the decline in proceeds from gambling activities is lower than before. It is not yet known how they will be allocated, but cuts to the visual arts sector may affect activities such as:

- Visual arts communities

A significant part of the activities of visual arts communities are made possible by community subsidies awarded by Taike. These subsidies are used to run high-quality and cost-effective exhibition and loan programmes for art that are accessible to people across Finland. 

Orpo’s Government Programme explains why these subsidies should not be cut: A diverse arts and cultural scene which people hold in high regard is the hallmark of a civilised nation. Culture plays an important role in enhancing citizens’ resilience, comprehensive security and a sense of national cohesion.

- Targeted subsidies for artists

Taike awards targeted subsidies for artists’ projects to cover expenses such as material and production costs. These subsidies are essential for the creation of high-quality professional art. The number of applications is already very high.

Orpo’s Government Programme explains why these subsidies should not be cut: We will ensure that there is freedom of art, that the wellbeing of artists is secured, that there is a sufficient number of artists and that the labour markets function.
 

The following forms of support will remain unchanged next year under the budget proposal:

• Number of artist grants, 545 grant years + index increase
• Number of artist pensions, 51 pensions + index increase
• Visual arts display grants EUR 960,000
• Promotion of the Percent for Art Principle (Taike’s subsidies for Percent for Art projects) EUR 500,000
• Support for exhibition payments EUR 1,000,000. The recently published Museum Barometer shows that subsidies for exhibition payments are an important form of state support for museums. New institutions have been included under the scope of this subsidy so there is pressure to increase funding.
• Appropriation for the Finnish National Gallery collection EUR 739,000
• Compensation for private copying EUR 11,000,000

More information:

Annukka Vähäsöyrinki
Director, Artists’ Association of Finland
tel. +358 400 773 105
annukka.vahasoyrinki@artists.fi

Text corrected on 18 October 2023: the sum granted last year for the activities of the national art and culture communities.