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Arts: Small Businesses

Answer

This Government is committed to supporting UK artists and cultural organisations to reach international audiences and take advantage of opportunities overseas. We recognise the challenges faced by small and medium-sized arts organisations undertaking international touring, including regulatory complexity, administrative burdens, and transport costs.

The Government primarily supports arts and culture through its Arm’s Length Body Arts Council England (ACE), which provides funding to a range of organisations up and down the country. International working is one of four priorities for ACE’s Touring Fund, enabling UK arts organisations and artists to reach audiences overseas and develop international partnerships. Recent examples of tours supported by ACE include Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Black Sabbath, The Ballet tour to the Netherlands, Germany and the US; and Performance Infinity’s tour of five UK theatre companies to four locations in China. International touring is also supported through ACE’s Incentivising Touring Repayable Grants, which supports touring in England, but can include tours with international performances, such as Rambert’s upcoming It’s A Sin.

We recognise that organisations face wider challenges beyond funding when undertaking international touring, particularly barriers arising from the UK’s exit from the EU. To improve our understanding of these issues, DCMS recently commissioned independent research into the impact of EU Exit on UK touring and we continue to engage with industry stakeholders and European partners on opportunities to support cultural exchange and international touring across the continent.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

35006

Session

2026-27

Subjects

Travel Arts Small businesses

Link

View this Written question on www.parliament.uk