On the morning of the second day of their informal meeting, the European Member State ministers of culture devoted their working breakfast on Tuesday 8 April to an exchange on the future EU ‘Cultural Compass’, overseen by the Polish Presidency of the Council.
The aim of this draft strategic framework is to develop a long-term vision for European cultural policy in order to better integrate culture into the Union’s major priorities.
“Culture is not only soft power. It’s our security infrastructure”, stressed the Polish minister, Hanna Wróblewska, at the press conference which concluded two days of work.
In her view, in the face of growing political tensions, “culture gives us the tools to talk about universal and local values”. She added that “what unites us is culture”.
The European Commissioner for Culture, Glenn Micallef, has confirmed that the initiative will be published later this year.
In his view, it is a question of being “coherent and ambitious in our culture policy”, by setting clear principles to guide public action. He also announced his intention to propose a joint declaration by the European institutions – Commission, Parliament and Council – to “deliver a strong ‘Cultural Compass’ that will reinforce the place of culture in Europe and in our politics”.
According to a working paper consulted by Agence Europe, the ‘Compass’ will serve to ensure that culture is better taken into account both in the EU’s sectoral policies – such as climate, democracy, health and social inclusion – as well as in technologies such as artificial intelligence and issues linked to the enlargement of the EU to include new Member States.
The text also calls for guaranteeing access to culture for the majority of citizens, in particular by supporting artists and professionals in the creative sectors.
Member States were invited to formulate, in one-minute speeches, the strategic principles they would like to see incorporated into the future ‘Cultural Compass’.
Although details of the contributions have not been made public, Hanna Wróblewska welcomed the general convergence between the delegations, saying: “Over these two days, we spoke in one voice”.
Commissioner Micallef indicated that the current discussions were based on the Council’s resolution on the work plan for culture. The future ‘Cultural Compass’ is also expected to serve as a framework for discussions on new EU programmes, according to the working paper.
On 20 March, at an event attended by some 60 stakeholders from the cultural and creative sectors, Mr Micallef launched the consultations with a view to producing this future cultural strategy (see EUROPE 13605/13). Further consultations will be carried out over the coming months, and discussions will be held at the Education, Youth, Culture and Sport Council on 13 May. (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)