TORIES REFUSE TO CONSIDER ART FOR BUILDINGS (Cheltenham Liberal Democrats)

Cheltenham Liberal Democrats <info@cheltlibdems.org.uk>

TORIES REFUSE TO CONSIDER ART FOR BUILDINGS

June 20, 2007 5:49 PM

Tories on Gloucestershire County Council have refused to even consider encouraging works of art on new public buildings in the County, such as schools and libraries.

At a meeting of the Full Council today, Tory votes defeated a Liberal Democrat motion to re-introduce a scheme promoting artwork on new buildings, even though the motion only called for consideration to be given to the policy and not an outright commitment on the day. The Liberal Democrat motion called for the reintroduction of the Percent for Art Policy which involved spending approximately 1% of the cost of a new building upon a specific decorative feature, provided that the users of the building were able to contribute their ideas to its design and benefit from its eventual construction.

Cllr Charmian Sheppard, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for children and young people said:

"I am very disappointed by the response of the Tories to this proposal. They have refused to even consider the reintroduction of a very successful policy to support and promote local artists and enhance the appearance of our buildings and the experience of those who use them. In the past this policy has added a sparkle to many of our schools and libraries, and it has very frequently involved users of the buildings, such as school children, in the production of lasting works of public art. It is a shame the Tories couldn't bring themselves to even consider our proposal."

Cllr Jeremy Hilton, Liberal Democrat group leader, said:

"It doesn't say much for the Tory commitment to art that they have thrown out a proposal just to consider developing a policy on the matter. Under the previous administration the Percent for Art Policy complemented many of our new buildings with a unique, individual work of art designed just for them. Today's meeting has shown that under a Tory administration this council commitment will never return. Increasingly this Tory leadership looks unimaginative, unambitious and mean spirited."