EU CONSULTATIONS ON CULTURE - SHARE YOUR VIEWS

The European Union is currently conducting several online consultations with the arts and culture sector in preparation for the next Multi Financial Framework (MFF budget) starting in 2028, as well as about the new EU policy framework for culture entitled the Culture Compass.

We encourage our members to take part in the still open consultations listed on the EU website.

Below you will some highlights from IETM ’s answers:

EU BUDGET FOR ARTS AND CULTURE AFTER 2027

The European Commission has been charged with delivering - as stated in their consultation - ‘a simpler, more focused and responsive long-term budget that reflects the EU’s strategic priorities with the ambition to be an ‘investment Commission’.   

Part of that consultation revolves around what should be the future of Creative Europe, the only stand alone EU programme dedicated to arts and culture.  

IETM has, in a 18 page policy paper, stated its view on the value and importance of Creative Europe. In the EU´s consultation survey we strongly warn against the merger of successful programmes stating that such measures are unlikely to improve efficiency or access - rather such measures would risk creating  disconnection from the rich creative sector on the ground - a risk the EU can not afford to take. We particularly warn against merging and streamlining Creative Europe at a time when the European Union strongly needs a cultural global positioning based on fairness, global inclusion and elevation of artistic voices.  

EUROPEAN CULTURE COMPASS

The Culture Compass will serve as a strategic framework for EU cultural policy. It aims to improve the consistency of EU policies and strengthen coordination between funding and policy.

A call for evidence, open until 30 May gives the public as well as arts and culture organisations an opportunity to share their views on which should be the priorities of an EU culture policy. A further survey consultation can be found here, open until 6 June. 

IETM full response to the Call for Evidence can be found here - a quotation from it sums up the accumulated vision of IETM members in a recent publication The New International: Against all Odds:

In the performing arts sector, the drive for international collaboration is stronger than ever. Artists are deeply committed to forging global connections, even in the face of a fractured world. This is a profound opportunity for the EU to position culture at the heart of its global leadership - using the arts not only to promote shared values but to shape a more just and sustainable world. The Culture Compass must become the vehicle for this vision, with a strong, independent Creative Europe programme at its core - one fully dedicated to connecting the world through artistic expression. Culture must be given its own political space, rather than being narrowly instrumentalised for economic or security agendas.