EU’s $826 Billion Recovery Plan Criticized over Lack of Cultural Funding

European cultural figures are protesting a new $826 billion recovery plan that aims to mitigate the economic fallout facing the twenty-seven member states of the European Union because of the coronavirus pandemic. While the relief package has been described as ambitious by lawmakers, representatives from the EU’s creative industries are saying it does not provide enough funding for the arts, failing one of the sectors worst hit by the ongoing global health crisis.

“This is about all of us and it is way bigger than any one of us,” said Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, as she addressed European Parliament members in Brussels. “This is Europe’s moment.” According to the New York Times, the bailout, which still has to be approved by all of the member states, would go into effect on January 1, 2021 and would mark the first time that the EU raised unprecedented amounts of common debt in financial markets, moving it closer to a more centralized government system.

“While the commission’s proposed recovery plan has a lot going for it, the specific figures for the education, culture, and youth programs are deeply disappointing and simply not in line with the statement by the commission president on the importance of future generations, along with education and culture,” wrote Sabine Verheyen, chair of the EU’s culture and education committee, in a joint statement with Massimilano Smeriglio, Michaela Šojdrová, and Milan Zver.

Called “Next Generation EU,” the recovery plan cuts the budgets of the cultural bodies Erasmus+, Creative Europe, and European Solidarity Corps, and according to the cultural officials, sets an “unacceptable baseline.” “All figures are far below the the commission’s original proposal for the 2021–2027 budget,” and this “sends a terrible message for the cultural, creative, and media sectors.” The statement concludes, “the Committee on Culture and Education will continue to fight for a budget that shows the necessary ambition and can make a real difference to these sectors, not just now, but for the next seven years.”