Australia Council support Creative Australia Policy

On Tuesday 26 March, the Australia Council’s Acting CEO Libby Christie held a live chat session where participants could discuss Creative Australia – the National Cultural Policy – as it relates to the review of the Australia Council.

For a full hour, those involved in the forum could ask questions and receive responses in real time from Christie in what was the Australia Council’s first attempt at using this process.

Feedback from the session seemed positive, and below is a link to the unedited transcript of the discussion.

Australia Council Creative Australia – live discussion session

Yesterday, Chair of the Australia Council Rupert Myer welcomed the launch of the new policy, which includes a $75.3 million increase to funding to the Australia Council over four years.

This additional funding is chiefly in aid of its core responsibility to support more artists who have achieved excellence in practice.

Myer welcomed the Government’s response to the Australia Council review being included in the Creative Australia policy. Initiated in 2011, the review affirmed the inaugural Chair Mr H.C ‘Nugget’ Coombs’ original vision for the Australia Council as relevant today, but recommended that the Council’s enabling legislation and governance be updated to reflect the Council’s place in 21st century Australia.

“The response to the Australia Council review also provides a timely opportunity to remake the institution to fit the times. Modernised legislation will clarify functions and remove constraints, providing Council with greater flexibility to engage more artistic expertise to assist its planning and decisions. Importantly, the new legislation also confirms that Council’s decisions on arts funding are made at arms’ length from government”, Myer said.

“Four decades after the establishment of the Australia Council I believe the changes outlined in this announcement offer the Australia Council a new flexibility, new tools, better interconnectivity and ways of meeting the challenges and securing the opportunities that lay ahead,” he said.

What are your thoughts on the new Creative Australia Policy? Share your thoughts/concerns below.