Government: Draft Legislative Programme

My Lords, it was curious to me that nothing was said in the Statement, and almost nothing in the document, about the Government’s policies for culture. It has been justly said that the test of how civilised a country is lies in the way in which it treats its prisoners. The right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Worcester spoke to us thoughtfully about that. It is also a test of civilisation how we treat our artists, so I look forward to the gracious Speech recognising that. I hope that the Government will not advance their primary justification for supporting our culture in utilitarian or instrumental terms, in terms of the benefits to our economy, real and important though they are, or to social inclusion, which is a precious by-product of shared aesthetic experience or in terms of education, although the arts are a wonderful resource for education. I hope that they will justify support for the arts frankly on the basis that they enrich the spirit and that, in developing our creativity and our responses to creativity, we develop ourselves as human beings. The arts are, quite simply, a great good in themselves. I am encouraged that James Purnell, in his first speech as Secretary of State, has affirmed that. Without adequate public patronage, too many artists will not flourish, and too many people will not have the opportunity to experience new artistic work and work that may not be immediately popular but which, if persisted with, will prove profoundly rewarding. Among the enduring attainments of a nation are its cultural monuments, and it is not too soon to begin to think about the Brown legacy. Therefore I hope that we shall hear these words in the gracious Speech, ““My Government consider that support for our best artists, painters, film makers, sculptors, poets, actors, dancers and musicians is quite simply a fundamental responsibility of government in a civilised society. My government will be munificent in funding the arts and heritage, and will expect those who distribute the money that the Government make available to identify excellence and support it generously without ensnaring creative people in bureaucracy and accountability””. I have some more particular proposals to make to the Government, which I hope will be secured in their cultural programme, perhaps among the other measures that will be laid before us. I hope that the Government will commit themselves to providing better support to enable museums and galleries to make acquisitions. Noble Lords debated the full case for this on 30 October last year, and I hope that the Government will look very carefully at what was said in that debate. The present situation is parlous and unworthy of a wealthy and mature country. By 2004-05, the public funds devoted to supporting acquisitions were worth only 13 per cent in real terms of what they were in 1980-81. If we are to seek an economic justification, for the benefit of our creative economy students of art and design need to see the best that is being created. Specifically, I hope that we shall hear in the gracious Speech that a statutory duty will be laid on local authorities to support museums and galleries, and that there will be funding to enable them to do that. I also hope that we shall learn of the Government’s plans for reform of the tax regime to enable donors to offset the gross value of their gifts of pre-eminent cultural objects against income tax. It would be churlish of me not to welcome the reference in the document to the Government’s plan for draft legislation to implement their proposals in the heritage White Paper. However, this policy has been in gestation for a very long time indeed, and the fruits of it are urgently needed, as are more funds for our heritage. Too much of our heritage has been allowed to become shabby. I want to see more tax reform: the introduction of historic properties maintenance relief to enable private owners of important buildings that are accessible to the public to offset maintenance costs against tax. It is particularly important that the settlement for English Heritage should be generous after so many years in which it has not been. It should provide headroom for English Heritage to be able to develop its strategy to secure the physical fabric of historic places of worship. More than 14,000 places of worship of all faiths in this country are listed buildings—indeed, 45 per cent of our grade I buildings are Church of England parish churches—but there are enormous problems for congregations to maintain the physical fabric. In its Inspired! campaign, English Heritage has made a modest request for funding of £2.5 million now and £8 million per annum in the next three years. I also hope to see policies to enable us to retain authors’ manuscripts and archives in this country. Here, I declare an interest as chairman of the UK Literary Heritage Working Group. The experience of seeing and handling the manuscript of a great poem, for example, is a kind of laying on of hands; it is part of the apostolic succession of our literary and intellectual culture. The Select Committee in another place endorsed the recommendations of the working group. One was that the douceur arrangement for inheritance tax and capital gains tax should be extended to income tax for living authors selling their papers to a designated UK public institution by private treaty. We would also like to see owners of pre-eminent cultural items enabled to submit them during their lifetime for acceptance in lieu of tax on their future estates. That, of course, would be of benefit to museums and galleries much more widely. My last wish is that the Government will pledge themselves to sustain the portable antiquities scheme. This is a voluntary scheme for recording archaeological finds that are made by non-archaeologists. The aim is to enable the information contained in these finds to be recorded and to illuminate our national history and local understanding. Noble Lords will have read recently of the extraordinary find by metal detectorists of a hoard of Viking treasure in north Yorkshire. Before we had the portable antiquities scheme, finds were largely not reported or recorded, and many simply disappeared. The scheme has been hugely successful. Sixty thousand reports of archaeological finds are made by members of the public every year, and a great many children and others attend educational events and workshops under the scheme. It is terrific value for money. The money needed in the next year is only £1.65 million. That is affordable, but it would be vulnerable if we were to have a less than generous spending outcome for the DCMS. The rattle of begging bowls in another place last night and here today is reaching a cacophonous crescendo. The Treasury may be tempted to stop its ears, but I say only that the money that the Government spend on the arts and heritage is indiscernible in the national accounts, and still would be if they were to commit themselves to 10 per cent real-terms year-on-year increases through the period of the spending review. The policies that I have proposed would gladden the nation, and would foster pride of place, pride in our country, pride in our local communities, pride in our traditions and culture, and pride in our Britishness today.