The Stage News: Published: Friday 10 September 2010 at 16:36 by Michael Quinn

Northern Ireland’s arts sector is bracing itself for job cuts and closures following the announcement that the region’s Arts Council is planning for a 20% cut in its spending plans over the next four years.

Speaking to The Stage, ACNI’s arts development director Noreen McKinney said the outlook was “bleak” with “somewhere between 15 and 20” of its 96 annually funded clients under severe threat, and warned “we may have to find more savings, possibly up to 25% as new facilities come on stream”.

McKinney’s comments come in response to evidence presented to the Northern Ireland Assembly by Deborah Brown, finance director of the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure, who said that “widespread and unpalatable” funding decisions are inevitable and will have “a very significant impact” on the region’s arts industry.

Read the full article: http://www.thestage.co.uk/news/newsstory.php/29561/northern-ireland-arts-braced-for-cuts-and-job