The Commonwealth's Role in Australian Cultural Development


Few would maintain that governments can or should create cultures or national identities. The creation of Australian culture and an Australian identity has been, and will be, the work of Australians themselves through what they do in their everyday lives, as communities and as individuals (whether it be as writers, workers in industry, farmers, parents or citizens). What is `distinctly Australian' is what we create out of that unique combination of factors that derives from our inheritance, our environment and our position in the world. This includes an indigenous culture, both ancient and continuing; a British cultural legacy (imprinted through language, the law and our institutions); the diverse inheritances of immigrant groups; the distinct experiences of class and region and the impact of place. We are genuinely and distinctly `multi-cultural' with meanings that extend beyond ethnic diversity.

The Prime Minister said on 10 July 1992:

The Commonwealth's responsibility to maintain and develop Australian culture means, among many other things, that on a national level;

Commonwealth Governments have long taken the view that they have a responsibility to preserve the national heritage and cultivate the arts. Over the years, the Commonwealth has established national cultural institutions and provided varying degrees of support for creative artists and organisations. The Commonwealth Literary Fund, for instance, was established as early as 1908; Film Australia's origins date back to 1911; and the Commonwealth Art Advisory Board was created in 1912.

Governments and individuals of all political complexions have made significant contributions to Commonwealth support for the arts. Among the most significant interventions was John Gorton's when, in 1968, he created the Australian Council for the Arts - which in 1973 became the Australia Council.

Since then, the role of the Commonwealth has expanded dramatically. In 1994-95, through the Department of Communications and the Arts, direct Commonwealth expenditure is estimated to be over one billion dollars. Additional funding for Australian cultural development is provided through other portfolios, including Foreign Affairs and Trade; Employment, Education and Training; Prime Minister and Cabinet; and Environment, Sport and Territories.

The cultural portfolio includes a dozen agencies and statutory authorities. A variety of mechanisms are employed to achieve the Commonwealth's objectives. These include, for example, limited investment and loans programs requiring high levels of private sector participation, such as the Film Finance Corporation; an indemnification scheme which assists exhibitions to the value of $500 million to tour; the Public Lending Right Scheme, which compensates the creators of works used in public libraries; and programs which fund companies and individuals directly, such as the Australia Council and the Australian Film Commission.

The Government fulfils its responsibilities through various means: direct Commonwealth expenditure; indirect support through the taxation system; partnerships with other levels of government, communities and the private sector; and legislative and regulatory provisions, such as protection of intellectual property through copyright, and local content requirements for radio and television.

commonwealth financial support for cultural activities (1994-95 budget)

Through the Communications and the Arts Portfolio, Commonwealth expenditure is estimated to be more than one billion dollars in 1994-95. This includes funding of $515.1 million to the ABC and $75.7 million to the SBS.

Funding of $117.1 million has been provided to the Australian Cultural Development Office (ACDO) for 1994-95. ACDO provides policy advice to the Minister for Communications and the Arts on Australian culture; liaises with cultural bodies and coordinates cultural activities with other agencies; and administers a number of financial assistance programs aimed at enhancing and encouraging the development of Australian culture.

Funding is provided to the national collections institutions for operating and capital costs through this portfolio. For 1994-95 budget allocations are estimated to be $33.2 million for the National Library of Australia, $19.1 million for the National Gallery of Australia, $9.1 million for the National Film and Sound Archive,; $13.5 million for the Australian National Maritime Museum, $30.5 million for the Australian Archives, and $6.2 million for the National Museum of Australia.

Assistance to the film industry is provided through direct funding to the Australian Film Commission ($18.7 million in 1994-95) and the Australian Film, Television and Radio School ($10.7 million in 1994-95). Funds are also provided in the ACDO budget to the Film Finance Corporation ($54 million in 1994-95), Film Australia ($6.4 million in 1994-95) and the Australian Children's Television Foundation ($2.1 million in 1994-95).

Financial support to the arts is dominated by funding to the Australia Council of $59.2 million in 1994-95. Funding is also provided through the ACDO budget to The Australian Opera ($7.4 million in 1994-95), the National Institute of Dramatic Art ($3.1 million in 1994-95) and the Australian Ballet School ($0.6 million in 1994-95)

Funding is provided to the National Science and Technology Centre ($4.9 million in 1994-95).

The Government recognises that it is just one player among many in the process: indeed the Commonwealth counts among its principal roles that of encouraging greater contributions from the States, local government and private industry.

In the past decade, State and Territory Governments have taken on a much larger share of the responsibility. Although the Commonwealth Government believes that it could be more effective than it presently is, the Cultural Ministers' Council has created the potential for a more comprehensive and coordinated approach to issues of cultural development. Commonwealth-State cooperation is highlighted in this statement by jointly funded new national institutions.

The proportion of private sector sponsorship of the arts and humanities compared to sport has fallen substantially. The Commonwealth recognises the need to balance the equation, and create a trend towards the pattern of private benefaction which so richly endows cultural activity in some other countries, most notably the United States.

The Commonwealth takes the view that responsibility for our creative life is shared, and that, not least among those who must work to develop self-reliance and self-sufficiency are the artists and their agencies and audiences. Without endorsing the view that government support tends to stultify creative output, the Commonwealth Government is determined that our cultural development will be driven as far as possible by the creative energy of individuals, groups and communities and that, wherever possible, government will not be the sole means of support for their efforts.

In recognition of their essential role in our nation's life, in 1993 the Commonwealth Government made the arts a full Cabinet portfolio. Early this year the Government decided to combine the Arts and Communications portfolios, because in the modern era there are natural synergies between them. These two measures are in part the fulfilment of the Government's promise to bring cultural issues into the mainstream of our national life, and accord them their rightful place in all decision- making. This cultural policy is another major step in that direction.

The Commonwealth's role in cultural development falls into five principal categories:

In various ways, the specific initiatives described in Creative Nation embody these ambitions of the Commonwealth.


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