Nearly half of councils cut culture spending

Almost half of local authorities have made cuts to culture, events and tourism since 2010, according to data gathered by the New Statesman.

Polling of councillors in English local authorities found 45% had made cuts to culture, events and tourism over the period.

That's in addition to the four in 10 that said their council had made cuts to library services in the same period. 

The survey also revealed a quarter of councillors think their council will soon go bankrupt.

The figures come in the wake of several local authorities, including Nottingham, Birmingham and Woking, issuing Section 114 notices, halting non-essential spending.

Last week, Nottingham City Council proposed cutting its entire cultural budget from next year as part of efforts to plug a £50m deficit.

Facing stretched budgets, other councils such as Coventry and Bristol have also proposed reduced cultural spending.