Equity held a ‘closed-doors’ briefing session at Stormont earlier this month which drew representatives from political parties of all colours, including the Minister for Communities, to hear from Equity activists about the importance of the arts in Northern Ireland.
Testimony from Equity members brought to fore the importance of storytelling to Northern Irish life. “When you lose your artists, you lose your storytellers, the people who tell the stories of nurses, of teachers, of the Troubles”, one Equity member explained to the assembled politicians.
Arts funding has been cut by over 40% in Northern Ireland over the past decade, with a devastating impact on artists, entertainers, production houses and venues. Before the most recent 2023 cuts, Arts Council Northern Ireland supported between 85-100 arts organisations through its annual funding programme. These organisations included venues, festivals, visual arts, music and community organisations. In 2023/4, 11 were no longer funded and 74 were funded at a standstill.
Equity deputy general secretary Louise McMullan took part in the briefing at the Northern Ireland Assembly and described the event as “excellent”. She continued: “It was refreshing and very important for us to get such widespread political engagement, with some parties sending multiple representatives. We received very sympathetic and committed responses. The Minister said he got it completely that the arts and our members have been badly served for over a decade, so our message really landed with those in the room.”
We’ll keep the campaign up for arts funding for our members, for the industry and for our communities across Northern Ireland. We cannot lose our artists and with them, our stories.
Alice Adams Lemon, Equity Northern Ireland official
Equity members spoke about their personal experiences as actors, entertainers and performing arts students in Northern Ireland. One member told of their experience being involved in Derry Halloween – described as Europe’s largest Halloween festival and involving multiple performances, a parade, fireworks and art and culture events, bringing significant tourist revenue and cultural value to the city which has had a drop in local funding this year, and no Arts Council NI funding at all. Another Equity member shared their personal story of coming from a vulnerable family and literally finding their voice through performing art. Each story placed unique value on performing arts and entertainment and answered why funding is so important.
“Our members spoke from their hearts and you could see that it connected with the politicians” said Equity Northern Ireland official Alice Adams Lemon, who had organised the event. “The most important thing for us was that all parties showed up at our briefing and took the time to listen and engage - that cross-party engagement is hugely important here. We made a strong case for the importance of arts funding and I’m delighted that the Finance Minister has since reached out for a meeting with us. We’ll keep the campaign up for arts funding for our members, for the industry and for our communities across Northern Ireland. We cannot lose our artists and with them, our stories.”
Find out more about Equity’s campaign against arts cuts in Northern Ireland
