OTTAWA, ONT.: The Canadian Arts Coalition (CAC) is leading a national call to action for Canadians to write to their Members of Parliament and the Prime Minister in support of art and culture in Budget 2025.
The Coalition, which represents many of the 850,000 workers in arts and culture, developed the campaign out of growing alarm that the government is signaling austerity for arts funding.
This comes at a time when the Coalition knows Canada needs the economic, employment, and social impacts of arts and culture more than ever.
Almost 30,000 emails have been sent in the first ten days of the campaign, making it one of the largest political campaigns for arts and culture in Canada’s history.
During the election campaign, the Liberal party promised to strengthen and nurture Canadian artistic and cultural organizations, and Prime Minister Carney declared in the French debate that culture was non-negotiable.
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PM Carney further reinforced the notion of cultural sovereignty in his mandate letters to his cabinet after the election. However, the government has since asked the Canada Council for the Arts and the Department of Canadian Heritage to propose 15% cuts to their budgets, which the CAC says would be catastrophic.
The Coalition states that while there are vital conversations around the efficiency of government, “an investment now in Arts and Culture could create over 65,000 jobs according to our research, create a renewed sense of Canadian identity, and respond to recent jobs numbers showing rising unemployment.”
CAC representative Chris O’Neill says “the government is making important investments to build Canada and ensure a strong economy, and there are existing highly effective mechanisms through existing agencies and programs that can ensure an investment in arts and culture would immediately invigorate the economy and be part of that nation-building project.”
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Reviewing the state of our industry over the past two years, the nonpartisan CAC determined the most effective way to support innovation, job creation, and economic growth in and through the arts across the country is to invest new funds in the Canada Council for the Arts and the Department of Canadian Heritage.
The Coalition is calling for a permanent commitment of a minimum of Canada’s annual spending to one percent, which is an increase of only 0.04% from current levels.
In this year, that would include $140 Million for the Canada Council and $190 Million for Heritage.
Cultural expression is vital to every single riding and neighbourhood of the country.
“From dance shows to film sets, from art galleries to live theatre, there are artists, cultural workers and organizations that enrich the lives of people and our economy every single day, but a cut and a lack of new investment would be devastating at a moment when we need the arts and our financial impact the most.
“Investing in arts and culture in Canada is investing in every community across the country, and is one of the best ways to ensure that Canada is ready to meet the moment.”
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