Section 376: The Mayor's culture strategy
575.Section 376 provides for the Cultural Strategy Group to draw up a draft culture strategy. The Mayor has the power to give the Cultural Strategy Group directions requiring it to produce the draft strategy by a set date. The draft will be submitted to the Mayor, who has discretion to make any modifications to it. The document will then be published by the Mayor as the Mayor's "culture strategy". The Mayor (under section 41) and the Cultural Strategy Group together will keep the strategy under review. The Group can propose revisions to the Mayor and the strategy can be revised and reissued subject to consultation.
576.Sections 41 to 44 apply to all the Mayor's strategies, and require the Mayor to follow certain procedural steps. Section 42 sets out the provisions for consultation in respect of all the Mayor's strategies. Where the Mayor wishes to make material revisions to the culture strategy which have not been recommended by the Cultural Strategy Group, Section 376 provides that the Group itself must be consulted along with the Assembly and the functional bodies, before any other persons or bodies the Mayor proposes to consult.
577.Section 41 sets out matters to which the Mayor must have regard in preparing or revising any of the strategies. The content of the culture strategy however, is not prescribed by the Act. Subsection (5) of section 376 sets out a list of topics for which policies may be included in the strategy.