FUTURE OF THE SIDE GALLERY IN NEWCASTLE

That this House calls on Arts Council England to review its decision to cut funding for the Side Gallery in Newcastle; recognises the unique work of the Side Gallery as the only gallery in the country dedicated to humanist documentary photography; congratulates the strong egalitarian governance of the gallery as part of the Amber collective that has built one of the North East's most significant cultural legacies in the last 50 years; expresses concern that the decision to cut funding may be based on the Arts Council's prejudice against the Side Gallery's egalitarian collective governance; and believes the decision to cut funding for the truly unique Side gallery will do great damage to art and culture in the North East.