Berlin’s government has approved a €130 million reduction in its cultural budget for 2025, a move that has sparked protests from the city’s arts sector.
Despite weeks of opposition from artists, museum leaders, and cultural organizations, the city-state government has decided to cut 12% from its funding for arts and culture as part of its broader budget plan for the coming year.
The budget cuts have raised concerns that Berlin, long considered one of Europe’s cultural capitals, could see its reputation diminished, with some institutions fearing closure. “Culture and clubs bring people to Berlin. They don’t come here for the food, they come here for the history and the culture,” said Emma Enderby, director of the KW Institute for Contemporary Art. She expressed frustration over the lack of clarity around the full budget and the short timeframe for adjustments.
“It’s very short notice, it also seems very short sighted,” Enderby added. “In Berlin, culture costs around 2% of the overall economy, yet they’re cutting us between around 10% and in some cases 50%.” Enderby confirmed that the KW Institute is already feeling the effects of the cuts, with staff contracts not being renewed and upcoming public engagement programs being scaled back as funding for 2025 remains uncertain until January.
Philip Bröking, co-director of Berlin’s Komische Oper, voiced similar concerns, highlighting the significant challenges posed by the budget cuts. “If that budget is cut, we face a double blow: fewer subsidies and less funding to cover extra costs. This makes us very sceptical about the future of our institution,” he said.
Paul Spies, co-president of the Berlin Museums Association, expressed disappointment at the government’s failure to heed the advice of cultural experts. The budget cuts are a sharp reversal from Berlin’s previous policy of increasing investment in cultural institutions. In 2021, Germany approved a record €2.1 billion for federal culture funding, a €155 million increase from the previous year.
Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner, a member of the centre-right Christian Democratic Union, defended the cuts, arguing they were necessary to ensure the city’s financial stability following a challenging year of declining revenues. “We need a change of mentality, including in culture,” Wegner said, emphasizing that the city’s overall budget of €40 billion remains strong despite the reductions. He also blamed the previous left-wing administration’s climate initiatives for placing financial strain on the city’s budget.
