Arts deserve vital funding
We are certainly not ones to look a pantomime gift horse in the mouth.
A £10 million boost for museums, theatres and the arts across the Black Country is enormously welcome.
But we cannot help but feel a little short changed by the drop in funding compared with previous grants for the University of Wolverhampton and by the rather below inflation increases for the likes of Woverhampton Art Gallery, Walsall's New Art Gallery and theatre group Black Country Touring.
We know full well that times are tough. And councils have had to draw up unpalatable plans to scale back their own investments and grants.
That is why it is hugely important that the Black Country Living Museum gets essential backing from the Arts Council.
This national quango is funded by English taxpayers but it does not have the most glowing reputation.
It came in for huge criticism over its handling of The Public arts centre in West Bromwich, which went many millions of pounds over budget.
Eventually Sandwell Council had to fund it only to then pull the plug when its own government grants were slashed.
Had the project been handled better in the first place, there would have been millions of pounds more available for the arts.
The arts are not something that should be the preserve of the wealthy.
The Black Country Living Museum is a vital guardian of our shared history and culture, a legacy for future generations so that they can be proud of their heritage.
It is a vital tool in the education of young people.
Wolverhampton Art Gallery and the Grand Theatre do an exceptional job of attracting exhibitions and big name stars and shows that people would otherwise either have to travel long distances to see or miss out on altogether.
One only has to look at the list of stars in the annual pantomime or the ones who perform in plays all through the year to see that it is not a cultural wasteland.
That the galleries and theatres bring them in with limited funding and against the backdrop of the ever present threat of cuts speaks to the enormous talent and dedication of the people who run them.
By bringing these events and shows to town and city centres, our theatres, galleries and museums bring people in where they spend money in restaurants, bars and shops.
The arts cannot be dismissed as a luxury in a time of austerity. They must be supported to continue their vital work.
BBC must not try to erase Rolf Harris scandal
The BBC is adamant that there is no link between itself and the crimes committed by Rolf Harris.
It should not so readily dismiss calls for an inquiry.
Harris, like the reviled Jimmy Savile and the convicted broadcaster Stuart Hall, was a fixture at the corporation for many years.
The BBC has already been forced to examine its culture and practices during the time that Savile was there.
What child protection campaigners want could easily be satisfied by widening the impartial investigation that is already underway.
The review will not be made public until after the forthcoming trial of DJ Dave Lee Travis.
The victims of Savile, Harris and Hall suffered in silence for years. New allegations about Harris are being looked at already because dozens more alleged victims came forward during his trial.
The BBC cannot possibly know for certain that nothing ever happened that its own people either knew about or could have prevented.
Therefore it must apply the same rigorous investigation that many of its news and documentary programmes give to uncovering wrongdoing elsewhere.
For an organisation that employs thousands of journalists at public expense, the BBC must demonstrate a willingness to ask awkward questions.
It would do no less were Rolf Harris a former employee of a red top tabloid.
