The economic success and the diversity of activities of the past two years had made Malta stand out in the cultural field, Culture Minister Owen Bonnici told Parliament yesterday.

Winding up the debate in second reading of the Arts Council Malta (Amendment) Bill, which was unanimously approved, he said that a different festival was organised nearly every six weeks, and Malta had much to offer through its cultural wealth.

Dr Bonnici said the Bill listed all sectors which fell under the remit of culture in Malta and which would be handled by the changed Arts Council as opposed to pro-jects which would continue to be administered by the Culture Directorate.

One such project would be the fashion museum dedicated specifically to the arts.

While each entity was separate, joint work would still have to be carried out, especially with regard to Valletta 18. This event should serve as an opportunity to promote heritage.

He said new initiatives such as the National Dance Company and the Academy of National Orchestra had been introduced and would continue to have cultural value after December 2018. Other projects such as the workshop in Marsa for Carnival floats were still in the pipeline.

Of the €1.3 million given to artists, not a cent will come from the Ministry of Culture, but artists will be funded by the Arts Council

All stakeholders had been consulted and one immediately realised that there were different niches that worked separately. Hence it was very difficult to please every organisation promoting Maltese culture.

Dr Bonnici said that of the €1.3 million given to artists, not a cent would come from his ministry, but artists would be funded by the council. He believed in keeping the politician at arm’s length in this sector; the most important thing was for the artist to sustain and govern himself.

In fact executive chairpersonship had been chosen instead of having a director in place. He was sure that the necessary supervision required for transparency was already in place through the Director of Corporate Services.

A fund would soon be introduced in order to help local councils organise cultural events to higher levels, Dr Bonnici said in conclusion.

Opposition spokesman for culture Joe Cassar earlier said the laws relating to culture and the arts required amendments on the lines of current priorities but those proposed in the Bill were not in conformity with these priorities.

The Bill did not distinguish between the functions and obligations of the operator and regulator. The Arts Council would be given wide powers in the cultural and creative economy sectors, so it would not be a true arts council. The role of executive chairman was a dangerous one since this person would have broad powers and would not be subject to a system of control.

The council’s obligations and functions were so wide that it was a ‘monster’ council – it would be the whole sector by itself.

Dr Cassar said he suspected that Albert Marshall would be appointed executive chairman – indeed a competent person but one who had made statements in the past that were in conflict with the Bill. He charged that the Bill was tailored to accommodate those who had campaigned for the PL in the last general election.