There was a definite sense of relief in the Scottish culture sector when John Swinney’s slimmed-down cabinet was unveiled.
Growing fears, if not paranoia, about a looming relegation of the arts industry were swept away with the unveiling of Màiri McAllan in a revamped role, which has arguably left the culture sector in a stronger position than it was in before the election.
For cultural organisations, arts companies and event organisers, the crucial aspect of Mr Swinney’s “streamlined” top team is that culture still has a cabinet secretary.
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Given that the cabinet has been reduced in size, going from 12 around the Bute House table to just nine, there was clearly a risk of Scotland’s cultural life losing its vital place, especially given the fact that arts spending still languishes below one per cent of all government spending.
There will also be a fair amount of intrigue, and perhaps even excitement, that responsibility for the culture sector has been handed to one of the most highly-regarded politicians to emerge through the ranks of both the SNP and the Scottish Government in recent years.
Ms McAllan has worked across the environment, land reform, biodiversity, transport, energy and housing since she was appointed to her first ministerial role in 2021, shortly after being elected to Holyrood.
It will not be lost on many in the culture sector that Ms McAllan worked as special advisor to the then First Minister Nicola Sturgeon before entering parliament, or indeed her previous career as a corporate lawyer.
The main concern for the arts industry will be how much time Ms McAllan will be able to devote to its needs and concerns given that she has been appointed cabinet secretary for education, culture and Gaelic.
It is fair enough concern, given the pressures on the education sector and the level of scrutiny she will no doubt face in the Holyrood chamber and beyond.
But the worlds of culture and education are inextricably linked, even if that has not been recognised within the Scottish Government as much as it should be, or as much as the SNP has actually pledged it would be.
A long-awaited national culture strategy published in 2020, shortly before the Covid pandemic struck, promised to place culture as a “central consideration” across all policy areas, including education, health and the economy.
However the Scottish Parliament’s culture committee has regularly criticised the lack of progress on delivering on this pledge, particularly when the culture sector has been regularly targeted for funding cuts.
Arts organisations have repeatedly made the case at Holyrood for greater recognition of the health and education benefits of cultural participation, without any notable progress in recent years.
Ms McAllan’s remit offers the chance of a fresh start in many ways, but particularly in terms of placing education at the heart of the government culture policies – and vice versa.
I can hardly think of a single arts organisation that does not have a significant commitment to education built into its work and programming. They are likely to see Ms McAllan's appointment and remit as a huge opportunity for improved support, as will Gaelic language organisations and campaigners, particularly those involved in film and TV.
Having a cabinet minister responsible for both culture and education can only help sustain and develop culture-related education in the classroom.
There have been some signs of progress, with the roll-out of a project to embed screen education in the school curriculum in Scotland.
The SNP’s election manifesto included an intriguing proposal to establish a new film and TV talent school in a university to “complement” the schools qualification.
The manifesto also included a proposed “Youth Culture Pass” worth £200, which would be offered to every young person in Scotland when they turn 18.
If fact, it is the SNP’s many manifesto promises that are likely to be dominating Ms McAllan’s culture in-tray in the coming weeks and months.
Top of the list for many in the industry will be a minimum income for artists scheme based on the model introduced in Ireland, which the SNP has pledged an initial £30m for to get it up and running.
More than £10m will be required to establish the youth culture pass scheme, a new national company dedicated to traditional music is expected to have a start-up budget of £5 million, £6.5m has been pledged for a postponed refurbishment of the People’s Palace in Glasgow, and the film and TV school has been pledged an initial £10m.
Over and above all that is a commitment to increase Scotland’s culture budget by at least £80m by the end of the parliamentary term, and an as-yet-uncosted pledge to remove Screen Scotland from Creative Scotland’s remit and establish it as a stand-alone agency.
Delivering on all these promises are the least the arts industry will expect after the funding delays, disappointments and undelivered promises of recent years, especially around the treatment of Scotland’s flagship arts companies, who have no long-term funding commitments despite a whole host of previous commitments.
