04.01.17
Councils call for clarity on European Capital Culture bids post-Brexit
Councils have urged the secretary for culture, media and sport to clarify whether Britain will still host the European Capital of Culture in 2023 after it leaves the European Union.
On 1 December Cllr Martin Tett and Cllr Ian Stephens, the LGA board chairs for the economy, environment, housing and transport and for culture, media and sport, wrote to Karen Bradley urging her to launch the bidding process “as soon as possible” and clarify whether UK cities will still be eligible when the Capital of Culture event takes place.
The DCMS then launched the bidding process on 16 December, but stated in an accompanying note: “We are committed for the UK to host the title in 2023, however bidding cities should be aware that the European Capital of Culture title may be subject to the outcome of those exit negotiations which could have a bearing on the UK’s participation and the government will advise bidding cities on this once negotiations have concluded.”
Cllrs Tett and Stephens said that clarity on the Capital of Culture was “a pressing matter” because councils and their business partners would need to be assured of the platform they would have to “showcase their work”, and to plan and invest accordingly.
Under current plans, a UK city will share the title of Capital of Culture with a Hungarian city in 2023.
Leeds, Dundee and Milton Keynes have all declared their interest in the title, after Liverpool (pictured) was Britain’s last European Capital of Culture in 2008.
However, it is not known how the plan will be altered by the UK’s eventual deal with the EU, which the government is due to make before withdrawing in 2019.
The government has been criticised for failing to set out its plan for negotiating with the EU, with the withdrawal process suffering a further blow this week when Sir Ivan Rogers, the UK’s ambassador to the EU, resigned.
(Image c. Peter Byrne from PA Archive and PA Images)
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