Cabe has been given a huge vote of confidence by shadow architecture minister Ed Vaizey, who has promised it will retain direct state funding in the event of a Conservative government
Vaizey was speaking a day after the Department for Culture Media & Sport said it would have to make £60 million in savings, a move expected to lead to a number of quangos being merged with others or scrapped entirely.
But he dismissed the “bizarre rumour” that a Tory government was looking at making the body self-funding.
“We need to keep the core funding in place,” he said. “Maybe Cabe can earn revenue in other ways and there’s nothing wrong with a public body having entrepreneurial spirit, but we will continue to support Cabe being broadly funded by DCMS and CLG.”
Vaizey told an audience of architects at a Q&A session last week on the future of architecture, organised by Open City, that he was a fan of the watchdog — recently criticised by shadow housing minister Grant Shapps over the Kickstart programme.
“I’m a huge supporter of Cabe and congratulate the government on setting it up,” he said.
Vaizey reiterated that the Conservatives would scrap Arb and also admitted that the Tories had ditched the proposal of introducing a chief government architect.
“We toyed with the idea but I was advised if we appointed a chief architect he or she would alienate 50% of the profession,” he said.
Following a high-profile plea from institutions including the British Museum and the National Theatre, Vaizey added that the arts would still continue to receive government cash.
Architecture minister Margaret Hodge told the same audience that the government had spent £100 million on funding Cabe since it was established back in 1999.
She said it must continue to be funded through the state in order to retain its independence.
...as report urges local focus
Architects and other built environment professionals should undergo mandatory training in how to engage the public, Cabe claimed this week.
The watchdog’s Ordinary Places report called for a new focus on improving the ordinary places where more than 80% of people live, claiming suburbia and inner-city residential areas badly need the attention given to city centres and parks over the past decade.
The report noted that Cabe’s design review panel “rarely sees schemes that include information on the views of local people” and said funding should be guaranteed for schemes that properly engage with the public.
For more information www.cabe.org.uk/news/a-new-focus-on-ordinary-places
1 Readers' comment