The Minister of Culture had nothing intelligent to say when questioned by Algarve MP, José Carlos Barros, as to why the regional budget for culture has gone down rather than up, or at least held steady.
In questioning Minister João Soares (pictured) during discussions on the detail of the 2016 State Budget, Barros said the culture budget documents were “heavy on Word but light on Excel” with a fine supporting commentary by the minister leading to an actual drop in funding for culture in the Algarve region.
The regional budget has been cut by €2.9 million compared to 2015 and the Algarve Social Democrat MP is concerned that funds to support the arts have not been increased.
Barros also questioned the minister on the fact that the Algarve is the only region in the country for which there is no defined funding under the regional section in the Culture Budget.
The PSD MP considered it "unacceptable that the Budget Programme provides zero regional investment in a region where the interaction of culture and tourism is increasingly decisive in development strategies."
On a visit to the Algarve in February this year, the Minister for Culture admitted that it is "absolutely obvious" that 2016 will see a shortage of funds for culture, putting the blame on the "tragedy" that resulted from the BES, BPN and Banif taxpayer support operations that have drained the country of billions of euros.
"Unfortunately, a good portion of our financial system has eaten resources that would have been far better used in the field of culture and cultural promotion of the country," said Soares, adding that it was not the Portuguese who had lived beyond their means but the men in the financial system that had ruined the country.
In the case of the Algarve region, Soares said in February, it "has a very significant role in cultural activities of the country with a vast and remarkable heritage, and some particularly important buildings."
