TRADE unions will warn Prime Minister Boris Johnson against proposed higher-education (HE) funding cuts for performing and creative arts subjects in a joint open letter today.

Proposed cuts in the sector’s teaching-grant budget for 2021-2022 would halve the value of grants for arts subjects in England, with funding instead prioritised for “subjects vital to the economy and labour markets.”

In their open letter, creative unions Equity and Bectu, the University & College Union (UCU), the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain, the Musicians’ Union, Unison, and Unite warn that the Tory proposal “threatens the health and accessibility of the entertainment and education sectors, jeopardises the livelihoods of HE and creative workers and narrows training opportunities for future generations.”

UCU general secretary Jo Grady warned that the cuts would devastate arts and entertainment provision in HE, risk widespread job losses and severely reduce access to students.

“As our letter makes clear, the institutions most vulnerable to these cuts are those with a higher number of underprivileged students,” she said. “It is simply unconscionable to deny these young people the chance to study subjects like art, drama and music.”

Ms Grady said that the government must cancel the cuts and help to “protect an industry in which we are world leaders.”

Equity general secretary Paul Fleming said: “If the government is serious about a levelling-up agenda, they’ll stop these cuts in their tracks.

“The only way to get authentic diverse working-class voices into the creative industries is by supporting quality HE provision as part of the training ecosystem.

“These cuts say that [Education Secretary] Gavin Williamson believes a reducing number of people can be a professional artist: that can’t be right.”

The Department for Education was approached for comment.