Unions publish open letter opposing higher education cuts to arts subjects

Seven trade unions have published an open letter to Boris Johnson opposing proposed funding cuts to creative arts subjects.

Equity UK, University and College Union (UCU), BECTU, Writers Guild of Great Britain, Musicians’ Union, Unison and Unite say they are "aligned in protest" against the £17m reduction.

The letter says redirecting funding towards specialist institutions risks creating “geographical cold spots” for arts education and described the planned removal of London weighting on per-student subsidies as "levelling down".

Black, ethnic minority and disabled students will be disproportionately affected by any cuts, the letter adds.

"If the government continues down this track, we could be seeing one of the biggest attacks on arts and entertainment in English universities in living memory," UCU General Secretary Jo Grady commented.