Press release - 7 March 2001

National Campaign for the Arts (NCA) welcomes boost for museums and galleries.

The National Campaign for the Arts (NCA) this afternoon welcomed the Chancellors announcement in the Budget statement that the introduction of a new law will enable Museums and Galleries to reclaim VAT.

Victoria Todd, Director of the NCA said "We are delighted that Gordon Brown has recognised the importance of enabling museums and galleries to reclaim their VAT. This will provide the sector with the opportunity to scrap all remaining admission charges and place them on a level playing field which they have needed in order to operate an equitable system of free entry to some of the worlds greatest collections.

"We are particularly pleased to see that the Government is keeping its promise to 'make the core collections freely open to the public' (Mark Fisher 28 January 1997)."

On 3 February 1997 Tony Blair said in his Mansion House speech "The cultural life of any civilised society depends on access to the best being available to all and not just a small and affluent minority. Art is not elitist. What is elitist is a society in which art is hoarded for the few and never experienced by the many.. We are concerned about the introduction of admissions charges in National Museums. The evidence suggests that high charges can lead to a big decline in attendance. We would like to see institutions do all they can to balance the books while maximising access."

It would appear that with the introduction of the new law, details of which will shortly be announced by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport the Labour Party will be fulfilling its commitment to free access for all.

Director of The Museums Association Mark Taylor, said:

"The museums want it, the public want it, and the Government want it - well done and about time too. The government's policy of free access for children has, so far, resulted in attendances up by more than 20% in six months, with some museums reporting a 70% rise. We now look forward to seeing an increase in overall visitor numbers.

Free admission to the nine national charging museums will open doors for all. No longer will you need to pay to see some of our greatest treasures. Everybody will be able to share in the cultural life of our great museums regardless of their income. We are still waiting to hear the exact details from Chris Smith, Secretary of State for Culture: we hope that the detail shows that the Government has truly delivered." The NCA in association with the Visual Arts and Galleries Association (VAGA), BECTU, engage - the society for gallery education - conducted a long-running campaign to secure free admission to arts and galleries.

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