Olympics 'robbing heritage of £160 million'

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Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee MP Edward Leigh says money for heritage projects will be cut due to the Olympics

The 2012 Olympics will suck up more than £160 million in National Lottery money that would otherwise have gone to museums, galleries and historic buildings.

MPs warned of a squeeze on those running restoration projects and told museum bosses they must turn to the private sector or to charities to raise more of their costs.

They also told the Heritage Lottery Fund - one of five boards which allocate cash to good causes - to tighten up its procedures.

It should do more to check on the management of projects it gives money to and it should rein in spending on its own bureaucracy, MPs of the Public Accounts Committee said.

"The money available to support heritage projects will be sharply cut between 2009 and 2012, as a direct result of the Government diverting more than £160million from the Heritage Lottery Fund to help pay for the Olympic Games," said Tory MP Edward Leigh, chairman of the committee.

"The fund will have to work hard to make ends meet."

There is growing concern over the scale of spending on the Olympics and doubts that the project will stay within its latest target of £10 billion.

The Heritage Fund is currently being asked to support schemes such as restoring West End theatres and buying a set of Poussin masterpieces for the National Gallery.

MPs said the fund should 'confront' the managers of projects it pays for to improve their performance. At the moment, one in six comes in over budget.

They also pointed out that the fund spends 9 per cent of its money on its own administration - £23 million a year.

 

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