Imagine Belfast 2008

A report published today by John Dowdall CB, the Comptroller and Auditor General for Northern Ireland, examines the process for the preparation of Belfast’s bid in 2002 for European Capital of Culture in 2008.


Background

Under a 1999 European Union Agreement, a city is to be designated European Capital of Culture each year from 2005 to 2019, with a UK city fulfilling the role in 2008. The original idea for Belfast to submit a bid came from Belfast City Council. The Council approached the then newly-formed Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL) to help develop a bid process. Although the Department did not have the lead responsibility for the bid, it became the main funder, contributing £800,000 out of a total of £1.3 million. The bid was put together by a limited company, Imagine Belfast 2008.

Main Findings

On the Decision to Fund the Bid

  • DCAL’s decision to help fund the Capital of Culture bid was closely aligned with the Department’s own objectives and those of other key agencies, and there was strong evidence from the experience of past cities of culture that a successful campaign would reap significant and long-lasting rewards (paragraph 2.9).

On Mechanisms to Ensure a Successful Bid

  • In NIAO’s view, the findings of both external and internal evaluations indicate that more could have been done at the outset to ensure that all those working on the bid had a clear understanding of what they were there to do (paragraphs 3.9 to 3.16).
  • While we acknowledge the difficulties in identifying suitable staff for the project, the delays in making appointments to some key positions created immense pressures in trying to produce a successful bid document. The fact that a bid was put together in these circumstances must be applauded (paragraphs 3.18 to 3.25).
  • It appears that some of the difficulties in Imagine Belfast were caused by having insufficient staff with the appropriate skills, which added to the challenges facing the Company (paragraphs 3.33 to 3.36).
  • NIAO commends the efforts made by Imagine Belfast to consult as widely as possible and ensure a broad range of input to the bid. However, by its own admission, the Company could have managed its feedback more effectively, thereby minimising the wastage of ideas and frustration for those contributing (paragraphs 3.43 to 3.48).
  • NIAO believes the actions of the key organisations, in particular the earmarking of £9 million by the Arts Council; £14 million by Belfast City Council for the development of two new sports facilities; and £33 million by Government for arts and sports capital infrastructure developments, regardless of the success of the bid, shows commitment to the spirit of the Belfast bid (paragraphs 3.50 to 3.53).

Key Lessons for Future Projects

NIAO recommends that the following, as good practice, should be applied to any similar future projects (paragraph 3.55):

  • all parties involved must establish at an early stage a clear and common vision of what is to be achieved
  • the roles and responsibilities of all those involved must be clearly defined, documented and understood from the outset
  • the project must have a realistic timetable, to enable all available time to be used constructively. The setting of time targets for specific elements of the process will help to achieve this
  • the project must be adequately resourced, both in terms of finance and personnel with the appropriate skills. There must be appropriate resource planning to help prevent crisis management, and appropriate project management
  • where a number of different parties are involved, there must be appropriate mechanisms in place for effective communication and co-ordination, and a commitment from all concerned to adhere to these
  • where input is sought from a range of interested parties, there must be clear and consistent procedures for the recording, evaluation and use of such input.

On Belfast City Council’s audit findings and Imagine Belfast’s response

  • Following a request from the Board for an audit, the findings of BCC’s internal audit team, in their draft report of late April 2002, indicated a lack of basic internal controls within the Company in the first 12 months of its life. Any organisation spending money on the scale of Imagine Belfast would be expected to have in place basic controls such as documented financial procedures, comprehensive tendering procedures, segregation of duties, hospitality guidelines, proper supporting documentation for expenditure and proper authorisation procedures (paragraphs 4.4 to 4.11).
  • Our review revealed no evidence of the misuse of public funds by Imagine Belfast. However, the control weaknesses identified by Belfast City Council Internal Audit are of concern, given the high profile nature of the Company’s business. In our view, the Board of the company and the sponsor organisations should have been alert from the outset to the need for sound internal control systems (paragraphs 4.15 to 4.20).

On the Legacy of the Bid

  • Although the bid was unsuccessful, key funding agencies are keen that the process should leave a significant legacy and have highlighted the following outcomes:-
    • significant additional funding (paragraph 5.11)
    • government-wide support (paragraphs 5.12 and 5.13)
    • partnership working (paragraph 5.15)
    • an increase in tourism to Belfast (paragraph 5.16)
  • NIAO acknowledges the commitment and hard work of a small group of staff and Board members in developing the Belfast bid. It understands that the Department has considered carefully the findings of the various evaluation exercises carried out and that the lessons learned have been promulgated to those bodies for which DCAL has responsibility. NIAO recommends that, in addition, the Department should make those lessons learned available to all central and local government bodies who might be involved in sponsoring any project where a specific company is established from scratch to achieve a time-limited objective (paragraph 5.20).