8 September 2026

SDLP Opposition Communities Spokesperson Mark H Durkan MLA has said Communities Minister Gordon Lyons must listen to the anger and frustration of artists and creative workers who gathered at Stormont today demanding action on arts funding.

Mr Durkan was speaking after members of the creative sector delivered an open letter expressing no confidence in the Minister and warning that a lack of leadership and sustainable investment is damaging the arts across Northern Ireland.

Mark H Durkan MLA said:

"Nobody working in the arts wants to be standing outside Stormont pleading with the Executive to recognise the value of what they do.

"The fact that artists and creative workers have reached the point of expressing no confidence in the Minister should tell him just how bad things have become. These are people who enrich our communities, tell our stories and contribute enormously to our economy, but many are now questioning whether they can afford to build a life and career here.

"I welcome every additional pound that reaches the arts, but the Minister cannot point to an increase from such a low base and pretend the job is done. Organisations remain trapped in financial uncertainty, artists continue to struggle to make a living from their work and we continue to lose talented people because they can find better opportunities elsewhere.

"The anger we saw today at Stormont is about leadership too. The sector is still waiting on an arts strategy while organisations and livelihoods hang in the balance. Gordon Lyons told protesters that he is on the same page as them. If that's the case, it's time he started showing it. People need an arts strategy, certainty around funding and a Minister prepared to make the case for the arts around the Executive table.

"The SDLP has already set out proposals for sustainable, multi-year funding and a Strategic Arts Fund drawing support from across government. The arts contribute to tourism, health, education, our economy and communities, but that contribution is still not reflected in the support the sector receives. The Minister has responsibility for delivering on the arts and he needs to do that, but the wider Executive cannot wash its hands of this either. We need to see a serious commitment to the arts, backed by the investment to match it."