An investigation has been launched into the £120m “festival of Brexit” amid considerations customer numbers had been lower than 1% of early targets.
A cross-party parliamentary committee has requested the National Audit Office (NAO), the general public spending watchdog, to look into how the undertaking was managed to “help get to the bottom of how so much taxpayer money could be frittered away for so little return”.
Originally unveiled in 2018 by Theresa May as Festival UK* 2022 – it was alleged to be a nationwide celebration of creativity following the departure from the EU.
Jacob Rees-Mogg dubbed it the “Festival of Brexit” earlier than it was rebranded because the Unboxed competition.
However, earlier this yr Politics Home reported that the competition – which is meant to evoke the spirit of the Great Exhibition of 1851 and the 1951 Festival of Britain – had acquired 238,000 guests in contrast with organisers’ preliminary “stretch target” of 66 million.
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And final month the Commons Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee (DCMS) referred to as for the investigation after discovering it to be an “irresponsible use of public money” and criticising its planning as a “recipe for failure”.
Its chairman, Conservative MP Julian Knight, stated: “That such an exorbitant amount of public cash has been spent on a so-called celebration of creativity that has barely failed to register in the public consciousness raises serious red flags about how the project has been managed from conception through to delivery.
“The NAO’s investigation will convey welcome and thorough scrutiny and assist resolve how a lot taxpayer cash may very well be frittered away for thus little return.”
Calling for the investigation in September, Mr Knight stated the design and supply of the competition “has been an unadulterated shambles”.
“The paltry numbers attracted to the festival despite such a hefty investment highlight just what an excessive waste of money the whole project has been,” he added.
The NAO’s comptroller and auditor common Gareth Davies has proposed a “short, focused report on Unboxed” which may very well be accomplished and printed by the tip of this yr.
Meanwhile, the federal government and organisers declare the programme has reached each a part of the UK, in additional than 100 cities, cities and villages, spreading work, alternatives and opening up entry to tradition.
A spokesperson for the Department for Digital Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) stated: “More than four million people have engaged in Unboxed programming so far and these numbers are set to rise further.”
And a spokesperson for Unboxed: Creativity within the UK stated: “The numbers reported misrepresent the public engagement with Unboxed and reflect attendance at only eight of the 107 physical locations within the programme.
“Unboxed’s artwork, science and tech commissions have been introduced in over 100 cities, cities and villages, engaged tens of millions throughout dwell and digital and employed 1000’s of creatives across the UK.
“The Unboxed programme continues until the end of the year.”
Source: information.sky.com”