Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash
Shadow Attorney-General
Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations
Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate
Senator for Western Australia
Paul Fletcher MP
Shadow Minister for Government Services and the Digital EconomyShadow Minister for Science and the Arts
Member for Bradfield
Tom White
Liberal for Curtin
4 DECEMBER 2024
COALITION COMMITS TO FUND COTTESLOE’S SCULPTURE BY THE SEA
Liberal for Curtin Tom White and the Coalition today made an election commitment to fund Cottesloe Sculpture by the Sea, providing $1.5 million over two years ($750,000 per year in 2026 and 2027).
The Albanese Labor Government’s refusal to fund the iconic Perth event is inexplicable and according to organisers means it will not go ahead in March 2025. It will hugely disappoint the many West Australians and visitors who are regulars at this event.
Federal member for Curtin Kate Chaney has failed her local community by being unable convince the Government to fund the event.
Shadow Attorney-General and Senator for Western Australia Michaelia Cash, Shadow Minister for Arts Paul Fletcher and Liberal candidate for Curtin Tom White moved immediately and successfully secured the Coalition commitment to fund the event.
Senator Cash said the Albanese Labor Government has allowed an iconic and popular Perth event to go by the wayside.
“The Albanese Government pretends it cares about Western Australia but it has no concept of what is important to the people of our great State,’’ Senator Cash said.
“Peter Dutton and the Coalition get the fact this is a much-loved event and deserves to opportunity to continue into the future,’’ she said.
Shadow Minister for the Arts Paul Fletcher said it is inexplicable that Arts Minister Tony Burke’s funding agency, Creative Australia, has refused to provide funding.
By filling this funding gap, the Coalition has given Sculpture by the Sea the support it needs to proceed with the 2026 and 2027 events.
Liberal candidate for Curtin Tom White said he was delighted to be able to successfully fight for the funding commitment to be delivered quickly by the Coalition.
“The Federal Member for Curtin Kate Chaney has proved completely ineffective in supporting one of this electorate’s great events,’’ Mr White said.
“Whether it is through lack of motivation or lack of influence Kate Chaney has let the people of Curtin down,’’ he said.
There is no event in Australia which is more successful than Sculpture by the Sea in attracting large numbers of Australians to interact with world class visual art in an accessible and friendly setting – and of course it is completely free to attend.
Over 220,000 people attend Sculpture by the Sea Cottesloe each year.
Its success in making art accessible is a key reason why, under previous Coalition Governments, Sculpture by the Sea received significant funding: one million dollars under the Catalyst program in 2017, and two million dollars under RISE in 2021.
But under Labor there has not been one dollar committed to Sculpture by the Sea.
In a typically misleading comment, the government’s spokesperson cited the RISE funding in comments to the The West Australian newspaper – while somehow forgetting to mention that this decision was made by the previous Liberal Government and not the Albanese Labor Government.
Instead of funding more front line arts events like Sculpture by the Sea Cottesloe, Tony Burke has increased funding for more public servants in Canberra: the numbers of public servants in Creative Australia have increased from 96 to 149 and the number of board members from 11 to 38 in the last two years. An additional 80 positions.
Australians who care about the arts will rightly wonder what Minister Burke is doing with their money when he has made such an inexplicable funding decision.
ENDS
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