THE arts are always an easy target for policymakers.

They think: “If we have got to make cuts, we’ll cut the arts.”

There is a famous quote from Winston Churchill during the war, when his finance minister needed to save money and said: “We should cut down on the arts.”

Churchill turned round and said: “If we do, what are we fighting this war for?”

I think the Ropetackle Arts Centre is an amazing community focus in Shoreham. The population of Shoreham is about 8,000 and about 6,000 people have been to events there.

It is a stunning building. It is beautifully designed. It works fantastically well as an auditorium, a theatre, a movie house.

Jazz brunch It has got such a range, from being very heavy, very serious, to being fun and light.

A few months ago we went to a wonderful jazz brunch, with Herbie Flowers. It was just magical.

In some ways the centre reminds me of Germany – where I spend a lot of time on tour, because it is one of the biggest readerships for my books.

Germany has the highest number of readers in the world outside Iceland. Part of the reason for that is every single town has a Literaturhaus, an arts centre like the Ropetackle, and it is part of their way of life.

If you live in the city or town, you go out once a week to the hub, for a reading or a music evening with drinks.

Shoreham is such an attractive place. Its harbour is the lungs of Brighton in many ways.

Places like the Ropetackle are where the people of a place meet, get together, talk and share ideas.

The harbour is industrial: if Shoreham is going to grow and expand as a great place to live, it needs an arts centre at its heart as a balance to the industrial activity going around it.

I will help the Ropetackle in any way that I can.

When they were putting the whole concept together I was approached by Martin Allen, the chairman, asking if I’d give my support and help with fundraising. I loved the idea of the place, partly because that part of Sussex is where the first film studios in England were, way before Ealing and Pinewood or Elstree.

Shoreham Beach was known as Bungalow Town, because it is where all the chalets were that all the film workers and extras stayed in.

Focal point It was fantastic, the idea of an arts centre starting up where moviemaking in this country began.

It has become such a focal point.

If three out of four people in Shoreham have been to it, that speaks volumes about its value to the community.

If it went it would be a tragedy for the whole community and for the broader area of Sussex.

We are going through difficult economic times, but getting rid of all the things that make England such a great place to live ultimately is short-sighted folly.

If you’re going to live in a country that offers a cultural heart, then some things have to be helped and safeguarded and that is part of the responsibility of a civilised government.

Do you want to live in a British version of Mao’s Cultural Revolution, or Ceausescu’s Romania, where everything was about productivity and everything to do with the arts was destroyed?

We will come through this terrible recession.

When we do come through it, it would be nice to know that some of the things that make our county so special have been left intact.

l The Ropetackle is looking for 200 people to donate £100 each. Peter James, lyricist Sir Tim Rice and East Worthing and Shoreham MP Tim Loughton are among those who have pledged support so far. For more information about the appeal visit www.ropetacklecentre.co.uk or call 01273 464440.