British councils will “disappear” within 10 years, according to parliamentary leaders, harming Britain's global standing and creating an international vacuum to be filled by Russia and China unless the government acts to save it I was able to leave.
Scott McDonald, chief executive of the British Council, said it had seen £250m in budget cuts, lost hundreds of staff and complied with the council's presence in up to 40 countries. .
McDonald said that without financial guarantees from the government, “I think we're at risk of disappearing, probably for 10 years. And I don't think I'm saying this just for the headlines.” No, I think that's really true.”
The financial crisis puts at risk hundreds of millions of pounds in economic activity generated by councils' work, puts Britain's soft power and cultural influence at risk, and has a knock-on effect on diplomacy, tourism and international student recruitment.
The council independently generates 85% of its revenue of nearly £1bn a year from commercial activities such as language classes, but although it has an active presence in 100 countries, it has between 30 and 40 operations. We are forced to consider closing down.
“This leaves a vacuum in these 30 or 40 countries. There is no British council promoting Britain and our culture, our education. And also by our allies, there is probably no number of Vacuum cleaners will also be filled by non-aligners. Putin's Russia will move to these places to teach the language, promote the culture and capture the hearts of young people, thus opening up on a wider scale. Now, that’s very harmful,” McDonald said.
He said China was attracting students from around the world through scholarships and other aid, and UK higher education faced competition for talented students and billions of pounds of international tuition fees. I pointed out that there is.
Professor May Tan Marin, Provost Universities that read Malaysiasaid the British Council's guidance was invaluable in establishing the campus.
“British education is an international export success story, but it is not given.Places such as Singapore and Malaysia have historical links to Britain, but British universities are widely used in travel almost anywhere in the world. and have to work hard to convince students they can go to UK facilities, Tan Mullins said.
Professor Neville Wylie, Chair connected scotland The International Higher Education Group says: “The global reputation we enjoy today is simply unthinkable without the contribution of UK Council teams across the UK, UK and around the world.”
The council’s financial instability stems from a £200m Covid-era loan from the government. The government charges commercial rates for repeated one-year terms and requires annual reauthorization, which MacDonald said was a “very painful experience for us.”
McDonald added: “We really need help with that loan. The government has to make it workable for us and on reasonable terms. You have to start funding us so we can do more.
“We would like to amortize the loan, but in this economic environment, I think that would be very difficult to justify. So we would like reasonable loan terms, like 25 years or a lower interest rate, and then we would I promise to pay it back in full.”
A Foreign Office spokesperson said: “We remain committed to ensuring the financial stability of English Councils and continued funding will support our commitment to the important work they do in promoting the English language, British arts and culture and education. emphasizes support for.
“Due to its commercial activities, UK councils are legally subject to subsidy control, ensuring fair and free market competition in the market, and remain committed to recovering loans once finances permit. We continue to work closely with UK Councils and the Treasury on this issue.”
McDonald said he offered the council art collection The equivalent of the government in exchange for loan write-offs, including works by Barbara Hepworth, Steve McQueen, David Hockney, and Rachel Whiteread, is useless, but useless.
The council wants to avoid selling any of its art collection. Many are given by artists to support the work of British Councils. But the financial crisis may leave no alternatives.
“I think getting better terms and additional funding on this loan should help prevent a significant art sale, which otherwise would be due in another 12 months.” I have a pound loan on my head,” McDonald said.
The British Council has championed artists since its foundation in the 1930s. Sonia Boyce, from the Council Committee that won the Golden Lion at the 2022 Venice Biennale, said: As a result, a lot of things changed for me. ”
Other governments fund their outreach more generously. Goethe-Institut It receives around £900m a year, with France contributing £600m. AllianceFrancaise Others are much higher than the UK government's £160m.
“Even for a small country like Portugal, its equivalent would get £250m.” Macdonald, a member of the UK government’s newly created “Improvement Commission,” said:soft power council”.
