There is a lack of an overall vision or direction to the Government’s events policy that needs to be addressed if the UK is to capitalise on the opportunities that major events provide, according to the latest Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) select committee report.
And it questioned whether the upcoming 'festival of creativity' Unboxed: Creativity in the UK - also known as the Festival of Brexit - would deliver a return on its £120 million of public funding.
The report said: "The Government is spending a lot of money on this year’s major events. Yet while individual occasions may well deliver memorable moments, we see no golden thread linking the events or tying them to a vision for the future of this country.
"If the UK is to leverage major events fully, they must unite people at home and abroad around a sense of shared culture. However, we see no sense of how 2022’s events will take us on a journey of renewal as a country — despite the many differing views about the image of Britishness that the events should promote."
The report is extremely critical of the preparations for Unboxed: Creativity in the UK - colloquially known as the Festival of Brexit.
"Recent years have seen major events policy formed through little more than ministerial fiat, and nothing illustrates this better than the vague and shape-shifting nature of Unboxed: Creativity in the UK. There is no one in Government with clear ownership for 2022’s programme of events, and few meaningful links between the events themselves.
"In the future, we call on the Government to be clear about what it is trying to achieve through major events and how they fit with wider policy priorities, and then to embed that vision through long-term planning and resourcing."
"The Government and organisers have great ambitions for this year’s “festival of creativity”, Unboxed: Creativity in the UK, but have thus far failed to communicate a compelling vision for it to the British public, or to develop a meaningful plan for touring it internationally. With so little time to go before the festival’s programme begins, we seriously question whether it will deliver return on the £120 million investment for the public purse or simply prove its sceptics right."
The committee also criticised the funding for DCMS's flagship UK City of Culture programme.
It said: "It is indicative of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport’s lack of spending power that the Government could find £11 million for a potential five-nation bid to host the World Cup 2030 while DCMS’s flagship cultural programme, UK City of Culture, is unable to guarantee any funding to successful applicants."
The report adds that while digital content is vital to achieve the ambitious engagement targets set out for this year’s events, traditional media platforms still play an important role, and calls on the Government to strengthen the listed events regime and planning framework for major events to better reflect how people consume content.
It is also critical of the Government's approach to the legacies that major events leave behind, with specific reference to this year's Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
The report said: "Although the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games present a great opportunity for the people of the West Midlands, particularly through its volunteer programme, there remains a sense that legacy funding and long-term evaluation have not been sufficiently prioritised.
"This leads us to conclude that, ultimately, there is a lack of an overall vision or direction to the Government’s events policy. This needs to be addressed if the UK is to capitalise on the opportunities that major events provide."
The DCMS Select Committee is appointed by the House of Commons to examine the expenditure, administration and policy of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and its associated public bodies. Its current membership is:
Julian Knight MP (Conservative, Solihull) (Chair)
Kevin Brennan MP (Labour, Cardiff West)
Steve Brine MP (Conservative, Winchester)
Clive Efford MP (Labour, Eltham)
Julie Elliott MP (Labour, Sunderland Central)
Rt Hon Damian Green MP (Conservative, Ashford)
Dr Rupa Huq MP (Labour, Ealing Central and Acton)
Simon Jupp MP (Conservative, East Devon)
John Nicolson MP (Scottish National Party, Ochil and South Perthshire)
Jane Stevenson MP (Conservative, Wolverhampton North East)
Giles Watling MP (Conservative, Clacton).
M&IT editor Paul Harvey is a journalist with more than 15 years of experience. He began his career in the local press, working for various titles across the north. Since joining M&IT in 2013, he has become a trusted and respected voice in the sector, championing event professionals and reporting on all aspects of the events industry for the brand.
