Arts heavyweights tackle Blair on 'dumbing down'

TONY BLAIR last night listened first hand to senior critics from the arts world who have accused the Government of "dumbing down" and neglecting them in favour of pop culture.

The Prime Minister had grown concerned about the chorus of disapproval and last night invited them to air their views at a private meeting at Downing Street. "He was in listening mode," said a No 10 source. Those giving Mr Blair the benefit of their advice included Sir Richard Eyre, the former director of the National Theatre whose report condemning the management of the Royal Opera House is published today; Sir Simon Rattle, the conductor, and Sir Peter Hall, the theatre director.

John Tusa, the former BBC presenter who is now head of the Barbican Centre, was also there.

Mr Tusa recently said he was worried about the "PM because he is signalling that Oasis is as important to Britain as opera; that chat shows are as important as novels; that television soap operas are more valuable than live theatre."

Mr Blair has become increasingly alarmed about such criticism following the highly publicised parties at No 10 for young designers, artists and pop stars including Oasis, which led to Downing Street embracing the image of "Cool Britannia". The lustre was knocked off the image when some of the "cool" set turned against Mr Blair's government.

Mr Blair was accompanied by his Secretary of State for Culture, Chris Smith, who has also come in for criticism for caving in to Gordon Brown, the Chancellor, for starving the arts of cash.

Sources close to Mr Blair said he was a regular theatre-goer and just because he was known to be interested in rock music - he was in a band called Ugly Rumours while at university - did not mean that he did not appreciate the opera and the fine arts.

While the "whingeing" from the pop stars was brushed aside by Downing Street, the Prime Minister was more concerned about the criticism from the heavyweights from the arts, including Sir Simon Rattle, who claimed that the Government would "betray an entire generation".

The criticism about the priorities adopted by the Government was heightened over its decision to invest pounds 800m in the Millennium Dome, while the nearby Greenwich Theatre has been forced to close its doors for want of cash subsidies. In his report, Sir Richard will call for opera to be made more accessible to a wider audience with more government subsidies.

But his report is also said to severely criticise the Royal Opera House board and the Arts Council for its failure to supervise. The question of privatisation is passed back to the Government.