Oral question asked in the House of Commons, by Jeff Ennis (Labour). It was answered on Monday, 10 December 2007 on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

Arts Funding

Question: I estimate that, over the last five years, for every £1 that brass bands have been given, opera has been given some £1,113. It is even worse than that, because funding for opera has risen by 28 per cent. in the last five years while funding for brass bands has decreased by 22 per cent. Will the Minister agree to meet me and representatives from the brass bands, particularly the community and youth band sector, to ensure that we level up and deal with that gross situation?

Answer: I certainly do not want my hon. Friend to be brassed off, so I say to him that I support opera and brass bands. In that spirit, I will of course be delighted to meet him.

Secondary information