Hello everyone,
Thank you for being here. I am very pleased to welcome you for this presentation of the 2018 budget of the Ministry of Culture.
The President of the Republic made the commitment during the campaign that he would be maintained. His promise is kept. The means piloted by the Ministry of Culture will reach 10 billion euros next year.
This is a budget that has been preserved, and even strengthened, compared to this year. This is a level that had never been reached before. In a tight fiscal environment, this is a strong signal.
This Government has found, as you know, a worse financial situation than expected when it arrived. And he is committed, in a responsible way, to a movement to reduce public deficits, expected by our fellow citizens.
Faced with this situation, we had to make choices. This Government made the choice of culture.
It is a choice that forces us to take strong actions that will improve the lives of our fellow citizens.
Before I go into detail, I would like to say a word about the state of mind in which this budget was built.
It is directly related to the presidential project, and is therefore driven by a spirit of transformation.
In order to meet the challenges of the century, we must create new momentum. In all areas.
And we’re starting it today for cultural policy. It was born out of the momentum of precursors in the 1930s. It was sealed by the impetus of founders in the post-war period.
And then carried by the momentum of the builders- I want to pay tribute here to André MALRAUX, and the artisans of cultural decentralization, who have linked our territory.
There was the impetus of entrepreneurs, who expanded the cultural field, broke codes, opened new horizons to the public – Jack Lang did it so well;
And then there was the impetus of innovators, who helped cultural policy to take the different turns of this early century, especially digital.
Every step taken by my predecessors has counted on them. We must continue to build on their legacy.
Because culture remains fractured, by all kinds of barriers: social, economic, physical and psychological; whereas it should be – more than ever – a land of emancipation for our fellow citizens.
And culture remains marked by inequalities, whereas it should be – more than ever – a factor of cohesion; it should be a space that brings together, and this is perhaps where the logic of distinction is still most strongly expressed.
In the end, trust in cultural policy and in this ministry has been eroded: in a large part of the citizens – because there is still a feeling that we support a culture reserved for the few;
And among the cultural actors on the ground – because their difficulties are real, and they feel a certain inertia. This is about turning a corner.
This budget is not a management budget or an adaptation budget, it is a transformation budget. It bears the spirit of the mission letter signed by the Prime Minister – which is in your file and can also be found on the department’s website.
Our roadmap is based on six areas. What I would like to emphasize here is the change in method that will be implemented. We’re going to go through a number of “caps”.
To guarantee real access for all to culture, and the diversity it houses: this is the first axis. We will do this by investing in a universal way: school. Culture is still lacking. We want to change the game.
We will also strengthen the State’s commitment to the territories: this is the second axis.
We will go one step further, on the basis of the current network, and we will invest in local culture.
Third axis: the international dimension, starting with Europe.
Culture will be at the heart of its refoundation. And Europe will be an essential dimension in each of our issues.
These three fields – school, local cultural life and Europe – are the three new frontiers of cultural policy. The new situation will also concern cultural actors.
In supporting creators and artists, first of all – this is the fourth axis of our roadmap: we must be more flexible, more pragmatic;
And in support of the media and public broadcasting – this is the fifth axis of our roadmap: we have to move beyond digital.
Finally, and this is the sixth axis of our roadmap, a method axis: to achieve our objectives, we must transform our own organization and our modes of action, here at the ministry. The state must prove that it knows how to reform itself. Our citizens are waiting for it.
A brief overview of the figures, to begin with. As I said, the budgetary and fiscal resources managed by this ministry will reach 10 billion euros.
The Ministry’s budget appropriations will amount to €3.6 billion, an increase of €24 million over 2017;
The budget for public broadcasting will be 3.9 billion – I already had the opportunity to express my opinion on the 36 million euro savings, I will come back to that.
Tax expenditures will amount to €1.6 billion, up $36 million – notably to support film and audiovisual creation;
The TNC budget will be 724 million euros, also up by 17 million;
And 93 million euros will be added to the other taxes allocated: for the National Book Centre, the National Variety Centre, and the Private Theatre Support Association.
To give you the details of this budget, I will follow the six axes of our roadmap.
The first objective is to guarantee real access to cultural diversity for all.
We must combat the feeling of illegitimacy, which remains the first barrier of access. We have to take her down from infancy, and from school.
Arts and cultural education is our priority: for all ages of life, and especially for the youngest, from kindergarten to high school.
Culture should no longer be regarded as a supplement of soul. It must be at the heart of the school, and a common thread in the children’s journey.
I am not the first to have this ambition, as I am well aware. Initiatives have been taken. But the realities remain contrasted, according to classes, institutions.
We will make it a reality for all children of the Republic.
First, thanks to the complicity that binds me, on this subject, to my counterpart of National Education Jean-Michel Blanquer. It is unprecedented.
As soon as we arrived, we came together to talk about it and to start moving forward together. We share the vision and the voluntarism. That’s the starting point for everything.
Culture will be at the heart of the school of trust we want to build.
To change the game, we decided to formalize our ambitions in a common mission letter, which sets two priorities: the artistic practice and the taste for reading. It is also unprecedented. And it is decisive: clarifying priorities in this way helps to guide, to concentrate the efforts deployed, and thus to change the scale.
We are also going to make available the means to match our ambitions: the budget allocated to support arts and cultural education actions will increase significantly next year. It will be increased to €114 million – or €35 million in new measures.
We will change the game, finally, by driving a national mobilization and empowering each actor.
All agreements signed by the Ministry of Culture will now include a section dedicated to arts and cultural education.
And as a continuation of this massive effort to raise awareness among young people, we will begin to implement a “Culture Pass”.
I see it as a “cultural passport”, because the idea is to accompany entry into adulthood and citizenship through culture. To make young people independent in their cultural choices.
The Pass will be designed to finance outings, cultural goods, but also artistic practice – such as music classes.
The method of developing this Pass is an essential element. It is a path we want to take with young people. The design will therefore be participatory.
Consultations will be held at national and regional level this year.
And the first «tests» will take place in 2018. 5 million euros are provided in the budget to carry out these steps and design the tool.
Second axis of our roadmap: a new policy for the territories.
In recent decades, the State has invested a great deal in cultural decentralisation in particular – to link the territory and support projects with local authorities. Imbalances remain strong today.
It is now a question of reaching the citizens of territories «excluded» from the cultural offer: the citizens of rural areas, residential areas, districts in politics of the city, ultra-marine territories.
Here again, we are assuming clear choices: those of rebalancing and solidarity.
The territorial commitment of the State will pass a new course: that of local cultural life.
We will deploy additional resources, and in particular to the designation of the territories I mentioned: the decentralized credits will be increased to 860 million euros, an increase of 6%.
We will also focus our efforts on several rebalancing levers:
Heritage, first of all.
It is one of the cultural riches best distributed on the territory, and the most attractive, for our fellow citizens: I want proof of this 12 million visitors mobilized during the last Heritage Days.
It is a fragile wealth that we must maintain. And above all, make people live: heritage can be a lever of social cohesion and economic dynamism for the territories.
We are increasing support for the restoration of historic monuments to 326 million euros.
A specific fund of €15 million will be set up to help low-income communities revive their heritage.
The 2018 budget will also increase support to communities for the revitalization of old centres and the preservation of protected spaces to €9 million, in line with Yves Dauge’s report.
In order to support the “local” culture, we will also support library extensions.
It is about opening up “more”, but also “better”, by making these places the new cultural public service houses.
This is the purpose of the mission I entrusted to Erik ORSENNA, who started his Tour de France to mobilize professionals and local authorities.
He will get back to me by the end of the year with his findings, and we will have a large public debate on reading in March 2018.
With Gérard Collomb, we launched a mission to our two inspections to calibrate the means necessary for these increased openings – beyond the staffing that exists today.
In this spirit of “proximity”, we will also support the presence of artists in the territories they are absent from.
A budget of 6 million euros will be devoted to this:
On the one hand, it will be used to open cultural sites more widely, especially during school holidays, to welcome artists;
And on the other hand to deploy innovative projects in these territories, such as residencies or artistic homeless.
Third axis of our roadmap: international politics, with a priority for Europe.
European action is as decisive for cultural actors as the financial support we can give them.
It is at the European level that copyright, the fight against piracy and regulation for an equitable sharing of value are defended today.
This is a field I have been engaged in since my arrival.
I was in Brussels a few days after my appointment to participate in discussions on the Audiovisual Media Services (ADM) directive. The text we have arrived at will be a major advance:
It recognizes the right of Member States to have all those involved in broadcasting contribute to the financing of creation, even when they are established in another Member State;
It imposes a minimum 30% distribution quota for European works on video-on-demand platforms;
And it includes these platforms in audiovisual regulation.
This project is now under discussion with the European Parliament. The transposition of this directive should take place in 2018.
At European level, we are also engaged in the fight for the recognition of a neighbouring right for the benefit of press organizations.
At the national level, significant progress has been made in recent weeks regarding the contribution of digital giants to the financing of creation.
I am thinking of the coming into force last week of the so-called “Youtube” and “Netflix” taxes, which extend the video tax allocated to the CNC to all platforms affecting the public in France, regardless of their economic model or location of installation;
I am thinking of the action taken by Bruno Le Maire and Gérald Darmanin to have these companies pay a tax on their European turnover;
Finally, I am thinking of the agreement signed a few days ago, right here, between Google and audiovisual rights holders, to combat piracy. This is a first in the world: it makes it possible to better detect pirated works on Youtube, and to avoid that Google search leads to fraudulent sites.
I hope that other platforms will follow this example of cooperation.
This platform empowerment movement is therefore based on a policy of regulation but also on cooperative actions. It foreshadows a more general movement at European level.
Europe will clearly be one of the new frontiers for cultural policy. Because our model defends itself at that level. But also because culture – as a medium for exchanges – has a major role to play in reshaping the European project.
This is the meaning of the Erasmus of culture, for the mobility of artists and professionals;
It is also the sense of work we are doing to strengthen co-productions and translations.
Beyond Europe, we will develop the department’s international action.
I intend to further mobilize the Institut Français – for which the Ministry found a co-trusteeship last year, I recall, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Actions in favour of endangered heritage or the reception of foreign artists will be continued.
And the means allocated by the ministry to the Music Export Office will be significantly increased: they will be increased to 2.2 million euros, an increase of 57%.
New initiatives will also be launched:
The first edition of the Festival international des séries, Series Mania Lille-Hauts de France, supported by the CNC, will be held in April;
And the European Year of Heritage will also be launched in 2018: a great opportunity to carry out joint initiatives on the subject. Heritage is a powerful vehicle for bringing people together. It can help us build Europe.
The fourth pillar of our roadmap is support for creators and artists.
This is obviously an ongoing priority of this ministry, which supports all artistic fields: visual arts, dance, fashion, design, theatre, music.
We will strengthen creative support:
The means are strengthened compared to 2017: they increase by 6 million euros.
For cinema, audiovisual production and digital creation, the support fund – managed by the CNC – will increase by 2.4% to 724 million euros.
We therefore have the ambition to support more, but also “better” our creators and artists.
We will simplify the support, relax the rules, trust: the specifications must leave more room for experimentation, innovation.
And we must support in the long term: calls for projects must give way, where relevant, to lasting agreements.
The fifth axis of our roadmap: supporting the media.
Digital technology implies major transformations that can undermine the independence and pluralism that the State guarantees.
We must accompany so-called “traditional” actors in the transition, while preparing for the future.
Regarding the press:
Budget 2018 preserves the two priorities that guide our support policy:
First of all pluralism, an objective enshrined in our Constitution: support for pluralism is fully maintained.
The second priority is technological transition. We must support the innovation efforts of the sector: whether it is the emergence of new media, or the digital investment of older media. All innovation support schemes will be preserved in 2018.
As for the press distribution sector, we must continue to support it, taking into account market developments and the restructuring of the sector.
Thus: carry aids decrease, to take into account the decrease in the volumes carried.
The distribution aid, which mainly supports the sale by issue, is maintained but, in this area, we await above all the conclusions of the mission entrusted to Gérard RAMEIX. It should shed light on the economic situation of press messengers and on the prospects in terms of regulation and support for these important players in distribution.
A word also from Agence France Presse:
Its resources are slightly adjusted – to the tune of €1 million – but they are consolidated at a level higher than that provided for in the contract of objectives and resources: of an additional €3.5 million.
We have also engaged in discussions with AFP on how to support its strategic projects, its technological investments and the development of its brand internationally.
Concerning the audiovisual:
Here too, the challenge is to ensure the independence and diversity of the sector, while supporting the digital transformation.
The funding of the fund to support radio expression has been strengthened, to 31 million euros: a historic level, which reflects our attachment to local radio.
In the case of public broadcasting, the budget was constructed according to two guiding principles:
On the one hand, respect for our international commitments, notably for Arte or France Médias Monde, which yesterday opened its Spanish-language service in Bogota;
And on the other hand, the preservation of the operating budget: I am thinking in particular of Radio France, whose operating budget is maintained, while the investment allocation is reduced to take into account a lag in its real estate project.
I had the opportunity to express my opinion on the savings effort requested, but I remind you:
It is part of the government-wide movement to reduce public deficits.
This is a real effort: «less» 36 million compared to 2017, and «less» 80 million compared to the contracts of objectives and means established by the previous Government.
But it is an effort that is sustainable: it represents less than 1% of the public broadcasting budget. And it does not in any way challenge the support of the State.
Public service media play an absolutely indispensable role, and their priority missions will be preserved:
Provide quality and local information; Develop educational and cultural content;
Invest in the creation and international distribution of our content.
I recall that in terms of creation, the effort will be particularly sustained this year, with an increase of nearly 17 million euros in the budget of the CNC; and an increase at least equivalent in the cost of «cinema and audiovisual» tax credits, fully preserved in the finance law.
Public broadcasting will therefore remain at the heart of our priorities. But like all public services, it must change.
We’ll have to think about it together.
And I come to my last point.
The sixth axis of our roadmap, which basically irrigates all the others: the transformation of the modes of action of the ministry and its operators.
We are engaged, with the whole Government, in a reform of administrations: Public Action 2022.
The success of our cultural policy will not depend solely on the priorities we have set; nor on the amounts allocated.
It will also depend on our ability to act and to support actors in other ways.
To build this new public service of culture: we will simplify, relax, clarify our procedures.
Starting next year, for example, we will simplify the licensing of show entrepreneurs. And other projects will be opened.
We will also undertake reforms within the ministry itself and its operators.
We have already started to work differently, breaking silos – particularly between headquarters and regional directorates, the DRDAs.
We will continue the transformations next year:
We will reflect on the deepening of projects common to the societies of the public audiovisual, like the initiative Franceinfo;
We will streamline the real estate establishment of the central administration, which will increase from seven to three sites in Paris;
We will also contribute, to a limited extent, to the effort to reduce public employment: 160 of the 30,000 jobs will not be filled.
But modernization is also the increased recognition of those who commit themselves: the Ministry will lead an effort to upgrade salaries.
Finally, we will open a new phase of contractualisation with local authorities.
To support local cultural life, we need to work better, and more with them.
We must change our approach: not to impose solutions from above, but from the energy of the territories.
The aim is to build a new trust pact with local authorities, with more flexible contracts based on co-construction and co-responsibility.
An action component aimed at prevented audiences could thus be included in all our agreements.
I’m going to start discussions at a community council for culture, which I have in October.
Now, ladies and gentlemen,
The main axes of this 2018 budget.
Today, we are laying down the three new frontiers of cultural policy: school, local cultural life, Europe.
And we also define a new frontier for cultural public service: that of trust and innovation.
It is always difficult to find the right words, to say the need for culture. The best way to do that, basically, is to carry a high ambition for her. And to translate it into action. We are committed to that today.
Thank you.
I now propose that you answer your questions.