On Thursday 7 May, the results of the Scottish Parliament election will undoubtedly have a significant effect on authors in Scotland. While the cultural sector is of fundamental importance to Scottish economic and public life, we have found that workers in the arts are at a breaking point.
At the core of the issue is a systemic underfunding of the arts. While 2025 saw an increase in the culture budget, after seven years of standstill, many of the largest employers and commissioning organisations in literature saw a decline in public funding. The recent public investment in the arts, while commendable, falls short of the transformational nurturing that needs to happen across a struggling sector.
As authors, we also know that funding increases have not made their way to individuals – many of whom struggle to find any funded opportunities to develop their craft.
The funding that does reach individual creative practitioners is hardly equitable in its distribution. Last year, we conducted a survey with members of all the creative unions in Scotland and found that:
- 69% have experienced issues relating to late payment for work.
- 83% have seen a real term fall in earnings in recent years.
- 33% have not been paid for freelance work undertaken.
- 57% have rarely or never undertaken freelance work that presented fair royalties and/or intellectual property allocations.
- 53% have experienced, or seen, bullying, harassment or sexual harassment.
Whoever forms the next Scottish Government and is elected to Parliament must act decisively to save a sector that generates billions of pounds into the Scottish Economy.
Our calls for action
As a union, we are asking candidates to make two key commitments:
- To endorse the introduction of a Culture Act in the next parliamentary term. This campaign, led by Culture Counts, demands an investment in the arts that is in line with its monumental contribution to the country’s economy. A Culture Act would establish a solid statutory footing to secure Scotland’s cultural sector and support its growth.
- To cement the recommendations of the Fair Work Taskforce into their cultural strategies. To ensure that any funding to the arts is equitably distributed to the individual creators powering the sector.
Scotland’s cultural future requires better funding and a more equitable distribution.
Get involved
So, what can you do?
In a recent Culture Hustings, each party presented their plans for culture. You can watch the video here or below and read each of the parties’ manifesto promises online before deciding who to vote for.
You can also publicly support, directly email candidates or attend hustings and ask them about the Culture Act and the implementation of Fair Work.
