Museums

Lord Cormack Excerpts

Tuesday 15th November 2016 Lords Chamber

[Lord Cormack (Con)]

My Lords, it is a great pleasure to follow the noble Baroness, who has really brought the People’s History Museum alive for us. I remember that debate two years ago when the noble Lord, Lord Monks, and I talked about my visiting. I still have not got around to doing so, but I hope that perhaps next year we can arrange a visit by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Arts and Heritage, which I had the honour of founding way back in 1974 and which is still a vibrant and large group, including over 400 Members from both Houses and from all parties. I think we should go and see the museum.

I come to this debate as one who believes passionately in the enriching capacity that our museums have. They bring our people closer to their roots—specific roots, as was just talked about. In my own native town of Lincoln, where I have the honour to be the chairman of the Historic Lincoln Trust, the museum and gallery there played an enormous and enriching part last year during Magna Carta year. Next year we are going to be commemorating the 800th anniversary of the Battle of Lincoln. Probably not many of your Lordships have heard about the Battle of Lincoln but in fact it was, after Hastings, the most decisive battle in English history; it led to Henry III being confirmed on the throne, to the Plantagenet dynasty being secured, and to the French dauphin who had been invited by many of the barons to assume the throne leaving the country. It is a very important milestone in the development of our history. We are going to call the exhibition “Battles and Dynasties” and, through wonderful objects and works of art that we are borrowing from national, regional and private collections all over the country, we are going to seek to bring this alive.

That is a point that I want to touch on in this brief debate: I believe that the interchange of materials is of enormous importance. The noble Baroness, Lady Royall, talked about the People’s History Museum bringing things to London. That is very good, and I hope we will have chance to see some of them in this great Palace of Westminster. But for museums in the countryside to be able to borrow great national treasures, as we borrowed the Luttrell Psalter last year, is again an enriching and enhancing experience.

This very afternoon, as president of the All-Party Arts and Heritage Group, I chaired a meeting attended by a number of your Lordships and Members of the other place to hear about a very special museum in Scotland: the Kilmartin archaeological museum. We were told by the director, who spoke with great passion and infectious enthusiasm, what a rejuvenating effect the museum had had since it was founded in 1997 and will continue to have—not just on the intellectual and educational life of the area but on its economic life as well.

Far too often, Ministers—I am sure my noble friend who will respond to this debate is an exception—do not really have the breadth of vision that enables them to see that the prosperity and future of our country are themselves enriched and developed by our great historic buildings, cathedrals, churches and fine museums and galleries. Of course, our great national museums and galleries here in London have a starring role—but, as we have heard today, a vibrant museum in Manchester is having a transformative effect. I think back to my own youth when I was fired with enthusiasm for my great parliamentary hero, William Wilberforce. I went to Wilberforce House in Hull, which is still there, still attracting visitors from all over the world and still telling the story of one of the greatest parliamentarians of all time.

There is so much that our museums and galleries can do. We need the help of the DCMS and we need Ministers to look beyond the immediate balance sheet to the balance sheet of the nation. We need to have our museums recognised and supported and local authorities encouraged not to put them at the back of the queue. I heard of an authority today that spent 26p per elector on cultural pursuits. I know the constraints are real, but that is not good enough. Let us hope that this, like the debate two years ago of the noble Lord, Lord Monks, will be a springboard, and that we may go forward and ensure the long-term future not only of a truly great and important museum but of many others throughout our land.