“Culture is not a luxury”, “burial of culture” et “artists in struggle” : around 3,200 people, according to the prefecture, gathered in Nantes, Monday November 25 in the morning, in front of the Pays de la Loire regional hotel to protest against the drastic cuts planned by the latter in its subsidies to the cultural sector.
The region's budget has not yet been voted on but many cultural stakeholders claim to have already been informed by the region of a drastic reduction in the subsidies that will be allocated to them. Different actors and unions cite a drop of around 75% in the budget devoted to culture by the regional council, decided by its president Christelle Morançais (Horizons).
“For some, it’s less than 50% next year and nothing the following year, for others, nothing from 2025. Many workers, already precarious, will no longer find work at all”denounced Noémie Daunas, of the Synptac-CGT. “It’s catastrophic, the entire artistic sector in the region is threatened, in a territory which has nevertheless placed the emphasis on tourism, where many festivals are held”regrets Virginie Frappart, 51-year-old actress, who participated in the demonstration.
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Savings plan of 100 million euros on the 2025 budget
Requested by Agence France-Presse (AFP), the Pays de la Loire region could not immediately be reached. Last week, the regional council had neither confirmed nor denied this information. “The presentation of the region’s budget will be made at the time of the budget session, in December”replied the press service.
While the State's drain on local finances represents a loss of 40 million euros for the Pays de la Loire, Christelle Morançais announced that she would go further with savings “of the order of 100 million”.
The cultural sector is not the only one to denounce budget cuts: the regional family planning federation said in a press release on Friday that it had learned that the region was considering as early as 2025 “the pure and simple elimination of subsidies” which are paid to him. Mme Morançais also announced on November 19 on “100 positions will not be replaced within our departments, the equivalent of 10% of our workforce” by the end of his term.
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