$95m for museums and culture

The Government will spend $65 million on New Zealand’s museums and cultural trusts in the hope of protecting the sector from the impact of the coronavirus recession.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern visited Te Papa yesterday, as the national museum celebrated its first opening day since lockdown, to announce the recovery package, saying the cultural sector was among the most damaged by the crisis.

Of the funding, $25m will go to the national arts development agency, Creative New Zealand, which had suspended all funding programmes because of Covid-19.

Ardern said this would provide artists whose projects are funded by Creative NZ with jobs.

Te Papa will be another major recipient, receiving $18m to help it keep its doors open. Heritage New Zealand will receive $11.3m, and the Antarctic Heritage Trust will receive $1.4m. The Royal New Zealand Ballet will receive $2m, and the Waitangi National Trust Board $4m.

A $2m hardship fund for museums around the country will be established, and managed by Te Papa.

‘‘The contribution of the arts to GDP is significant, whether it’s film, whether it’s music [or] it’s large scale events . . . It is about supporting, just like we did with tourism, those sectors that have been decimated.’’

In addition to the Covid-19 response funding, Nga¯ Taonga Sound & Vision will receive $31.8m, partially to assist with it preserving a rapidly deteriorating audio and visual collection.

Te Papa chief executive Courtney Johnston said the government funding would allow the museum to reach a ‘‘stronger position’’ in the next financial year, and job losses were not being considered.