Fife Council should suspend a decision to give £150,000 of public money to the Alhambra Theatre amid ongoing talks about the future of theatre provision in Dunfermline.
That was the recommendation made by councillors on Fife’s education, health and social care scrutiny committee on Tuesday after the ruling to grant the funding by the council’s executive committee on January 12 was called in for further consideration.
The latter committee had voted to give the Alhambra Theatre Trust (ATT) £150,000 towards its operating costs next year amid concerns the venue may opt to close in March, and said there should be continued dialogue between the Alhambra and the Fife Cultural Trust-run Carnegie Hall to coordinate theatre programming.
However, following that meeting, Alhambra bosses said the trust “never asked for and does not intend” to accept that cash, adding they had been keen to work towards an amalgamation.
The Alhambra’s proposal was to run both theatres for £350,000 in the first year, decreasing annually to £215,000 in the fifth year, and they stressed the continued prospect of the Alhambra being awarded a standstill figure of £150,000 per year while the Fife Cultural Trust receives £350,000-plus per annum to operate the Carnegie Hall was of no interest to them.
With that in mind, Tuesday’s committee recommended that the funding decision should be suspended given the “ambiguity” around the need for the cash, and called for discussions between the Alhambra and Fife Cultural Trust over bringing the two theatres together to continue.
Councillors also wished to note that they support the sustainability of both theatres and recognise their different strengths.
Councillor Tim Brett, who instigated the call in request, said he welcomed the contribution made by the Alhambra and congratulated bosses on what the theatre has achieved.
However, he expressed a number of concerns about the executive committee’s decision.
He said: “Private business takes risks and it must stand or fall on those decisions. I personally do not think the council should be subsidising the theatre in this way and it sets a precedent that would be difficult to refute if other requests were submitted.
“For instance, if Dunfermline Athletic football club came to us and said they were in financial difficulty, would we be willing to subsidise them?”
But Councillor Lesley Laird defended the executive’s decision, saying the ATT had requested funding and had indicated a “very uncertain future”.