LEADING figures from the arts world have condemned devastating government funding cuts as a nakedly political attack on organised workers in the arts and on theatres outside London.

They will head protests at the offices of the Arts Council for England in London and Manchester tomorrow after the body announced funding cuts of £50 million to some of the country’s most respected theatres and institutions.

Julie Hesmondhalgh and Morning Star ambassador Maxine Peake will be among those attending protests organised by performing arts union Equity.

Targets for the cuts include English National Opera, Donmar Warehouse and Hampstead Theatre in London, and in the north, Oldham’s Coliseum Theatre, which faces a 100 per cent loss of funding.

Equity general secretary Paul W Fleming said that unionised arts organisations have been deliberately targeted, making the cuts “a nakedly political attack” and pointed out that the arts have lost 46 per cent of their funding since 2005.

“The arts are the lifeblood of our communities and local economies, and access to them across the UK does not exist without good well-funded jobs and a diverse workforce,” he said.

Ms Peake said that most of the organisations suffering 100 per cent cuts are outside London and that cuts in the capital “will mean people losing their livelihoods during a cost-of-living crisis.”

“We must not believe this false narrative that pits London against the regions but fight to ensure the proper funding of the arts across the whole of the UK,” she said.

Stage, TV and film actress Ms Hesmondhalgh said withdrawal of funding from Oldham Coliseum was “a catastrophic moment for the town and its people.”

Equity North West official Paul Liversey said: “The decision to remove funding for Oldham Coliseum demonstrates that the Arts Council no longer acts independently but is in fact implementing decisions made on high from central government.

“The decision further exposes the myth that the government is serious about levelling up in the north.”

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham is supporting the campaign.