Debate contribution: Riverside Theatre at Ulster University, Coleraine

Debate contribution by Mr Gordon Lyons on 28 January 2025.

MLA

Mr Gordon Lyons

Party at the time

Democratic Unionist Party

Date

28 January 2025

Type

Debate contribution (made as a minister)

Business

Adjournment

Heading

Riverside Theatre at Ulster University, Coleraine

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4764286

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Thank you very much, Mr Deputy Speaker. I thank the Member for East Londonderry for bringing the debate to the House. I thank her for her passionate contribution, despite her disgraceful attempt to exploit my family connections to the area to try to get me to take some action. In response to Ms Mulholland, I can confirm that I never did tread the boards in the Riverside Theatre. That was at other locations on the north coast. However, I would not be surprised if others in this place had had that experience. There are certainly plenty here with experience of amateur dramatics from what we have seen over past months. Members will be aware of the importance and value that I place on the arts, so I understand and appreciate Members' concerns about arts funding and infrastructure and the honest and welcome desire to protect, support and grow what we have in Northern Ireland. I welcome it, too, that the debate has touched on issues beyond the core point of the Riverside Theatre, and I want to address as many of the points that were raised as I can. To begin with, it is important to emphasise the facts about the position of Riverside Theatre as I understand them to stand. The theatre has been a feature of the Coleraine and north coast landscape and part of the cultural life of the area for more than a generation. Also, as was alluded to, it is hosting a popular run of 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory', which I do not think has been mentioned so many times in a debate. It is important to mention that because we need to take care not to give the impression that the theatre is not open for business or is on the verge of closure. Members are aware that the theatre is owned and operated by Ulster University on its Coleraine campus. It does not receive funding from the Arts Council or the local council. In addition, my Department has no role in the funding or oversight of the university. I understand that, as part of its ongoing campus programme, the university is considering various developments at Coleraine, and one of those projects is a review of possible options for the Riverside Theatre, as Mr Bradley pointed out, having met the university. I understand that the review has not yet been established, that a start date has not been decided and that no outcome has been predetermined. Such a review is a matter for the university authorities, and they will, of course, be aware of the role of the theatre and its place in the local community. It is important to make clear that the university has not yet made any decision on the future of the Riverside Theatre and certainly no decision to close it. However, while my Department and the Arts Council have no role in the management or funding of Riverside Theatre, that is not to say that we have no interest in the potential options arising from the proposed review.

I am confident that the university's considerations will take account of the role that a venue such as the Riverside Theatre plays in the cultural and social life of its hinterland. To that end, I can say that the Arts Council will be happy to provide its insight and advice on arts provision generally and, along with other stakeholders, on the arts ecology in the area. I am happy to write to the chancellor following the debate to highlight the issues that have been raised and the concerns that Members have expressed in the Chamber. I thank Members for raising the issue and for contributing to the debate.

The debate has allowed Members to raise issues of funding and future plans. I will say something on both. To Members who think that the arts budget is not enough and who have said so this afternoon, I say that I agree. To Members who think that the work and contribution of the people who make up our arts sector are not understood or valued by me or my Department, I say that that is far from the truth. Every day, the arts and the creativity of our people play an important and practical role across a range of Executive policies and priorities. As Ms Sugden said, they make Northern Ireland a magnet for tourism. They feed our entertainment, leisure and night-time economy. They are the catalyst for the design and creativity that develop products, transform processes, improve productivity and drive our digital, screen and other industries. Across health and well-being, they add real value in prevention, mitigation and treatment. Our education, childcare and youth work would be unrecognisable without them. As I have said before, the arts do not get the level of funding that is merited or required. I will continue working to increase funding, because I know the impact that the arts have across Northern Ireland in all the areas of policy that I mentioned and on the quality of life of everyone here. For those reasons, I argue that funding for the arts is an investment in and for the people of Northern Ireland. While the financial climate remains challenging, however, it would be unrealistic and limiting to reach the point of relying solely on public funding to provide support and investment for the arts sector. I am committed to continuing to fund the arts and to highlighting to Executive colleagues the benefits of doing so properly, but the opportunity exists to look for other opportunities to complement government funding. How government supports the arts is a central theme of the work being undertaken to develop a new arts policy under the heritage, culture and creativity programme that I announced in July last year. The programme will also see new policies developed for museums, public libraries and Northern Ireland's historical environment. The policy vacuum that existed is being filled, and the programme will be an important step forward in articulating the benefits that the arts deliver and the potential to do more and go even further. The approach taken in the work will include a focus on the contribution that each sector can make to equality of access and opportunity across socio-economic grouping, age, geography and so on. I want to encourage greater participation, particularly by people and communities who may feel that the arts are not for them or that their cultural and artistic activities and traditions do not quite fit. I want to explore the potential to encourage new and deeper collaborations and partnerships, supporting greater financial sustainability across the sectors and identifying approaches and opportunities that maximise the value of such important assets and their potential. In all that work, I will continue to advocate for the arts and make the case for more, well-targeted investment. I want to raise one other issue, which relates to the university more widely. I add my voice to those who mentioned the importance of Ulster University's Coleraine campus. I understand the role that it plays; its importance to local people and the local economy; and the investment that is needed, which Mr Bradley rightly highlighted. He invited me to Coleraine in my previous role. I will continue to support the university and advocate for the funding that is required to make sure that it does everything that it can do and fulfils its potential. I am grateful to Members for their contributions on the Riverside Theatre's position and on broader issues. I will close by noting that, in my role as Minister, I have had the opportunity to speak to many people working in, supporting or simply enjoying the arts. Despite the challenges that are often a fact of everyday life for many individuals and organisations across the sector, I have been met only with positivity and a willingness to help or offer constructive advice. I have also, of course, been left in no doubt about the challenges to the sector and the risks being faced. In light of those, I intend that the development of a new policy for the arts will bring a new focus on the fundamental strategic needs of the sector and on the measures that the Government and other stakeholders might take to bring the sort of change that everyone wants. I am grateful to the Member for securing this evening's Adjournment debate. It has been useful. The points have been noted, and I will ensure that they are passed on. I am grateful to all Members for their contributions. Thank you.

1,429 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:55 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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