Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay
Main Page: Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Conservative - Life peer)Treasure (Designation) (Amendment) Order 2023
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay Excerpts
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay
That the Grand Committee do consider the Treasure (Designation) (Amendment) Order 2023.
Relevant document: 32nd Report from the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay) (Con)
My Lords, I am very pleased to move this order, which was laid before your Lordships’ House in draft on 20 February. The revised code of practice was laid before your Lordships’ House in draft on 23 February.
The order designates an additional class of treasure, based on the outstanding historical, archaeological or cultural significance of a find that would not otherwise fall under the Act. The order further exempts from treasure legislation finds that also fall under the Church of England’s legal processes for dealing with moveable objects. The revised code contains clear information about the treasure process, clarifies the time limits for each part of the process, and provides guidance on the new definition and exemption.
During 2019, DCMS carried out an extensive consultation on the Treasure Act. The 32 questions covered issues ranging from practical administrative procedures to views on the future of treasure. Over 1,400 responses were received from a variety of individuals and organisations. These included detectorists, who make up 95% of treasure finders, commercial and community archaeologists, landowners, and cultural and archaeological organisations. The many thoughtful and considered responses have been fundamental to our work on these proposed changes, and we are very grateful to everyone who took part.
In addition to the consultation responses, we drew on the expertise of the treasure registry at the British Museum—which administers the process on behalf of DCMS—Amgueddfa Cymru and National Museums NI, and officials in Wales and Northern Ireland. We also commissioned full and detailed research from Heyworth Heritage on the options and impacts of extending the definition of treasure. We aim to simplify the treasure process and to strengthen its capacity to preserve important and significant finds for public access. To explain how the order and the revised code will do this, it may be helpful if I outline the background to the Treasure Act.
The Treasure Act 1996 replaced the common law of treasure trove in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. I am very pleased to see the noble Lord, Lord Inglewood, in his place, for he played a key role in bringing the Act on to the statute book. The Act essentially retained the definition of treasure as being composed of gold or silver, with the addition of an age limit of 300 years or older. The Act removed the common law condition that a treasure find had to have been hidden with an evident intention by the owner to return to recover it. The removal of this condition brought under the treasure process objects associated with Christian burials, meaning that such finds would be subject to the new Treasure Act and the Church of England’s legal processes. In 2002, an order was made extending the definition of treasure to include hoards of prehistoric base-metal objects and individual prehistoric objects with very low precious metal content. This draft order will amend that order.
Under the Act, a finder has 14 days to report a treasure find to a coroner, who will decide whether the find meets the definition of treasure. Treasure belongs to the Crown. Treasure finds are offered to museums which, if they wish to acquire them, will fund a discretionary reward for the finder and landowner. The amount and division of the reward is decided by the Secretary of State, advised by the experts of the Treasure Valuation Committee. This process is expertly delivered by our partners at the British Museum, Amgueddfa Cymru and National Museums NI.
In England and Wales, the Portable Antiquities Scheme, the voluntary recording scheme for archaeological finds made by the public, is managed by the British Museum and Amgueddfa Cymru in partnership. The scheme plays a key role in facilitating the reporting of treasure cases and their acquisition by museums. Aside from being the gateway to the treasure process, its role in ensuring that over 1.5 million archaeological finds made by the public have been recorded has added significantly to our archaeological knowledge. It has provided the data for nearly 800 research projects, including 161 doctoral theses. We have provided additional funding to support the scheme, including for a new Portable Antiquities Scheme database. This will include a treasure tracking system, which will noticeably improve the efficiency of the treasure process.
National Museums NI plays an equally important role, administering not only the treasure process but the reporting of archaeological objects, which is mandatory in Northern Ireland. It was part of the group which redrafted the code, along with its colleagues and officials from England and Wales—a demonstration of this partnership in action.
The Act has undoubtedly been successful at preserving finds for public access. Over 17,500 finds have been reported, 95% by metal detectorists, and of these 6,000 have been acquired by 200 museums across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. These 6,000 finds include the Shropshire bulla, the extraordinary golden pendant found in 2018, which was a star exhibit in the recent Stonehenge exhibition at the British Museum—it dazzled that Shropshire lad, my noble friend Lord Harlech, who has admired it online—and the Corrard torc, an equally singular piece of Bronze Age jewellery, now at Enniskillen Castle Museums.
Although I am not allowed to pick favourites, as a Northumbrian I have been particularly pleased to have two encounters with the eighth-century cross pendant found in Berwick-upon-Tweed in 2019. It is marked with a runic inscription of a previously unknown Anglo-Saxon name, perhaps its owner or a loved one. I had the pleasure of seeing it at the launch of the annual treasure report at the British Museum and then back at home in Northumberland at Berwick Museum and Art Gallery. That cross reflects the dual purpose of the Act, which is to preserve finds for the public which give them a personal and often tangible connection to the people who made and used these objects, and to provide material for academics and researchers, leading to new insights into our shared history.
The Treasure Act gives museums the first option on acquiring important and significant finds. It is a fundamental part of the UK’s cultural protection legislation, but there have been several times when the Act has not been able to secure important finds. The Crosby Garrett helmet, a unique Roman ritual object found in Cumbria, did not meet the definition of treasure because it is made of base metal. It was sold to a private owner, despite the great efforts of museums, including the brilliant Tullie House Museum in Carlisle, which I visited earlier this year, to raise funds to purchase it at auction. I am pleased to say that York Museums Trust was more successful in its bid to buy the Roman Ryedale hoard, and we are very grateful to the public and private donors who helped to fund that process so that the hoard can be admired by the public. But apart from the uncertainty of the sales process, museums acquiring finds on the open market may find that they are subject to premia and other costs.
The export licence deferral process, for cultural objects recognised as national treasures, can keep treasure finds in the UK, as happened with the bronze birrus Britannicus figure, which I had the pleasure of seeing at a bustling Chelmsford Museum in half term. But we should not need to rely on this system, which is triggered only when an owner wishes to take or sell an important cultural object abroad, to protect important finds which are made of base metal. The designation of the new class of treasure is intended to address this situation.
Finds will fall under the new class if they have any metal element, are older than 200 years old and meet the very specific wording in the order. They will have to demonstrate an exceptional insight into an aspect of national or regional history, archaeology or culture by virtue of their rarity, location or connection with a person or event. Where the coroner agrees that the find, either individually or in combination with other objects in the same find, meets one or more of these conditions, it will be defined as treasure. This new class will include finds which, despite being made of silver or gold, are currently not defined as treasure. Potentially, this includes gold or silver finds which are between 200 and 300 years old and single gold coins, such as the extremely rare Henry III penny found in Devon in 2022. Currently, these do not fall under the Act. It is worth emphasising that finds such as these will be defined as treasure only where they meet the new significance definition.
This additional class of treasure is limited to metal finds. I am aware that the Government are being urged to widen the definition of treasure further to include non-metal finds. Consideration was given to including other materials, such as stone and ceramic, in this statutory instrument, but we decided that doing so would be premature for several reasons. First, there would be significant implications for the resources of the Portable Antiquities Scheme in England and Wales, where there is no mandatory reporting of archaeological objects. There would also be an impact on archaeological excavations and archives and, potentially, on the planning conditions for some building development. Our view is that all these are important issues that need to be fully considered and canvassed before the definition of treasure is extended to non-metal finds. We will be monitoring the effect of the new class of treasure on museums, the work of treasure administrators and coroners and their staff. This information will support further consideration of the definition of treasure, including the possibility of widening it to include other materials.
We are also aware of concerns that this class may lead to the treasure process being overwhelmed. The wording of the order has been drafted to limit the definition of “significance” to only the most archaeologically, culturally and historically outstanding finds and, as I previously mentioned, we have increased funding for the administration of the treasure process. The order before the Committee is designed to provide a mechanism to acquire exceptional finds when they are recognised, but it does not impose upon finders, curators or administrators the duty of considering, at length, the possible significance of every single find.
The order also exempts from the definition of treasure finds which currently fall under both the Treasure Act and the Church of England’s statutory controls for moveable objects. The exemption will remove the confusion of having two overlapping legislative regimes and satisfies the undertaking the Government made during the passage of the Act. We have worked with the Church of England and believe that exempt finds will have a sufficient level of protection under the Church’s statutory processes. Equally, finds relating to other faiths and to Anglican congregations in Wales and Northern Ireland retain the protection that they have under the Treasure Act.
In addition to the order, we are also considering the revised code of practice, which contains guidance for users of the treasure process as well as the fundamental principles by which the process operates. The code has been revised to bring it up to date and to make it easier to use and more comprehensible. It introduces a more efficient process, with defined deadlines to reduce uncertainty about the responsibilities of all the parties in the treasure process. The process is almost unique in its capability to balance the differing interests of finders, landowners, archaeologists and curators to enable magnificent finds, such as the recently discovered Tudor pendant, to be preserved for the public to enjoy. It is that public interest which is the overriding principle of the treasure process, and we believe that the new class of treasure, the exemption and the revised code support that fundamental principle. I commend these changes to the Committee and look forward to hearing noble Lords’ views on them. I beg to move.
Lord Inglewood (Non-Afl)
My Lords, I must begin by stating unequivocally that I am a supporter of the statutory instrument and the code of practice. I should bracket that with a reference to my interests as set out in the register. As the Minister said, the SI and the code of practice are the logical evolution of the earlier statutory instruments and codes of practice which are all based on the Treasure Act 1996, for which, as the Minister said, I had ministerial responsibility. Interestingly, that Act was the result of 25 years’ lobbying by the late Earl of Perth, about whom a close personal friend, who was a director of one the main London museums, said to me “The great point about the Earl of Perth is that he never gives up”.
The policy on which the Act was based was taken on by the subsequent Labour Administration in very much the same way as we envisaged when it was put on the statute book. It seems to me a very good example of how sensible, pragmatic public administration can be achieved if dogma is not allowed to intrude too far.
The other thing the Minister said is that this legislation has been a success in what it has brought about. That is not only to the credit of politicians; indeed, it may have happened despite politicians. It also reflects well on both the work done at the British Museum through the Portable Antiquities Scheme, then led by Roger Bland, and the finds liaison offices scattered across the country. Indeed, I dare say that, had we known what we know now then, in 1995-96, we might have done what we are seeing take place here this afternoon.
Lord Bassam of Brighton (Lab)
My Lords, this has been a fascinating debate so far, and I will try to add a little bit to it. I always know it is an important debate when the noble Lord, Lord Vaizey, turns up to entertain us for the afternoon. We welcome the bringing forward of this statutory instrument and the accompanying guidance, which is a fascinating document. We can see that it is the result of a lengthy consultation process, as the Minister said, which was started back in 2019.
As he outlined in the supporting documentation, there has been a growth in detectorism and the number of detectorists. In fact, as the Minister was speaking of his many visits to museums and places, I was thinking that perhaps he sees a future for himself as a detectorist, out there at the weekends with his metal-detecting device, because he is clearly very enthusiastic for it, and rightly so. As he said, more than 95% of finds since 1996 have been made by metal detectorists and the annual number of cases of treasure has climbed in the intervening period. It is clear that there is no shortage of treasure, enthusiasm or talent in this country and there is a desire to satisfy ourselves about our heritage, as a nation with a rich history. There is clearly an increasing urge to be connected to the past. For some, this takes the form of researching their family history, while for others it is a more active pursuit which takes place on our fields, beaches, riverbanks and other places where detectorists gather.
As noble Lords have already said, the Treasure Act has helped to put many important finds in the hands of museums, providing another important means for people to be informed about the history of their local area. As the Minister hinted, several significant finds in recent years have not been protected under the law, leaving artefacts at risk of falling into private hands, unless museums were able to rely on other methods, such as securing export bans. There is obviously a ready market for finds overseas, and I suspect particularly in the USA.
The step-by-step approach proposed by the Government, making changes so that metallic items are captured by the Act but not yet extending it to non-metal objects, appears a sensible way forward. While we support the order, the consultation underpinning it was launched a long time ago in 2019 and we wonder why it has taken quite so long to bring this change forward. If any further changes are deemed desirable, such as extending it to non-metal objects, we would like to see a more rigorous timeframe so that there can be greater certainty. Clearly this is a growing area of interest.
Can the Minister talk about the role of local museums and whether such institutions will be at the front of the queue to claim items found in their area? Previous research by the Museums Association shows that local authority funding cuts have resulted in a drastic scaling back of support for local museums. Are any steps being taken to address that issue? I know the Minister will be familiar with concerns raised by stakeholders and in another place about the potential for these changes to lead to underreporting of treasure finds. Will he comment on those fears?
Finally, I think the Minister’s Commons colleague volunteered him to address the exemption granted to items that fall under Church of England processes. Perhaps he can say a bit more about this and on that decision to ensure the record is complete.
Although these questions need answering, we hope this order and the accompanying changes to guidance will further increase interest in finding treasure, help protect those items for the future and, in doing so, make a positive contribution to the telling of important local and national historic stories.
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
My Lords, this has indeed been an entertaining and informative debate, and I am glad that two of my predecessors have excavated themselves to join us. I can see why they speak so fondly of their time engaging with this process because it is a highlight for any Minister at DCMS to be involved. I am glad that the noble Lord, Lord Inglewood, shared the tribute that I paid to him for his work, with the late noble Earl, Lord Perth, and all those who urged the important change. He is right to highlight what a success the Act has been and the number of items that it has saved for the nation to be shared with the public and to highlight the way that it has inspired people to discover more or to shed new insights into the past, sometimes including obscure practices, such as why people would ask my noble friend Lord Vaizey any questions. That practice is no longer continued.
The noble Lord, Lord Inglewood, is right to point to the fact that this is not because of the work of any legislators or Ministers but because of the many dedicated experts who are engaged in the process. I am glad that, in our debate, Roger Bland, chairman of the Treasure Valuation Committee, and Dr Michael Lewis, head of the Portable Antiquities Scheme, received the credit that is due to them.
The noble Lord is right to talk about the disappointment that can ensue when these items are not shared with the public. One of the most wonderful things about this is that items often end up in a museum close to where they were found. They help us to understand local and regional history as well as our shared national history. The noble Lord, Lord Bassam of Brighton, is right to point to the important role of local museums in sharing these items and giving credit to those who have found them and generously donated to support them.
The noble Lord, Lord Inglewood, is right to point out that these items are not always expensive. Their value lies in their importance and in the fact that they have been lost to human view for so long. They can quite often be purchased for reasonable sums, and there are many generous grant-making bodies, such as the Art Fund, the National Heritage Memorial Fund, the V&A, Arts Council England and many more, which help to keep these items in public collections and shared with museums and local visitors around the country.
The noble Lord, Lord Redesdale, asked whether we had thought about putting part of this process on a statutory footing. I will take that point away and discuss it with colleagues, but I underline the point that I made in my opening remarks about the resources that we have given to ensure that the process is well administered. In 2022-23, we gave the British Museum £365,000 for the administration of the Portable Antiquities Scheme, £150,000 to support the treasure process and £808,000 to support a new Portable Antiquities Scheme database. The scheme in England now employs 40 full- time and part-time finds liaison officers and 12 part-time liaison officers. We will be monitoring the impact of these changes on the scheme’s resources, but I will take away the noble Lord’s point about statutory support.
The question that the noble Lord asked about whether a specialist coroner would help speed up the process has been looked at before. I will discuss that with officials as we monitor the impact of the changes that the statutory instrument brings about. We have certainly assessed the additional work that we know this will cause coroners and we are aware that some parts of the country may be more affected than others. We have engaged with the Chief Coroner’s office, with coroners themselves and with colleagues across government on the order and the revised code, and we will be providing opportunities for training and advice for coroners and their staff, as well as monitoring the impact of these changes.
The noble Lord, Lord Bassam, invited me to say a bit more about the Church of England exemption. I explained the history to it in my opening remarks: as the established Church, the Church of England is the only Church that is officially recognised and that has a formal relationship with the state. It is therefore the only Church that has its own specific legislation, including a system of controls on the protection and disposal of moveable objects associated with its buildings and land.
Before the 1996 Act, the common law of treasure trove required that treasure had to have been hidden with an evident intention by the person who hid it to return and find it, which meant that objects related to Christian burials were not treasure. The 1996 Act removed that requirement, bringing these objects into the treasure process, while they also remained under the statutory processes of the Church of England. It highlighted the possibility that other treasure objects might be found, not in association with burials, which could be subject to both of those statutory regimes. It was to remove this confusion that these finds have been exempted from the definition of treasure. Our view is that the Church of England’s statutory processes provide sufficient protection for these finds. Equally, finds associated with other faiths and the Anglican Communion in Wales and Northern Ireland are protected by the treasure process.
I am grateful to noble Lords who have taken part in our debate today. As I said, we will keep the impact of these changes very much under review. Each year, we publish a Treasure Act statistical release and an annual report. Seeing its publication and some of the items found over the previous calendar year at the British Museum is indeed a highlight for us all. Because of that report, we will be able to monitor how many additional cases go through the process. In addition, we will speak to all those involved in the process, whether administrators or acquirers or finders of treasure, to see how effective the change is and how it has affected them. With renewed thanks to noble Lords who have taken part in the debate, I commend this instrument to the Committee.