LLANGOLLEN INTERNATIONAL MUSICAL EISTEDDFOD BILL (Hansard, 27 June 1967)

§ LORD MAELOR
My Lords, I beg to move that this Bill be now read a second time. It is a great pleasure and privilege to me to commend this Bill, with which, as your Lordships may know, I have a near degree of family relationship. It was my brother who sponsored the Bill in another place. I am proud of that connection, and I wish that brotherly love should continue. As a Welshman, I am thrilled by what takes place each year in the setting of the picturesque little town of Llangollen, in an extremely beautiful reach of the valley of the River Dee. As one who has his home nearby, I have over the years watched with unbounded admiration the achievement of those who conceive, plan and organise this most remarkable Festival. It will be held next week for the 21st year in succession.
The Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod is truly remarkable—indeed unique. All Britain can take a pride in it, and especially Wales, of whose fabric of life it is now an established and precious part. It is simple and friendly and yet, because of what it is, grand and inspiring as well. Conceived after the last war, it has the aim—here I quote: To promote international peace and good will through the medium of fine arts, and in particular, the art of music. How appropriate it is that Wales, known as "The Land of Song", should seek to promote international peace and goodwill through music! Each July folk dancers and choirs from more than 50 countries come to the little town on the Dee, bringing the colour and the gaiety of many different national costumes. Llangollen itself has a population of only 3,000, but each year it is hoisted to about 180,000 by visitors to the Festival, audiences and spectators and participants, 137 of whom some 10,000 are accommodated in the area. As many as 2,000 come across the seas, from countries in Europe and far beyond.
No one who has fallen under the spell of the Eisteddfod, either by attending or by watching television broadcasts from the Eisteddfod field, would willing see it die. For it to be sustained as it must be sustained, having been established for 21 years, it needs to be assured of adequate financial support. In this sense, but only in this sense, it is a struggle for the organisers to keep the Eisteddfod going. Indeed, it is a great stuggle. Other support is available plentiously.
In recent years, the organisers have incurred significant financial losses. It is difficult for them to carry on unless they can count on a reasonably stable income. Apart from what I may call the commercial income of the Festival, particularly the fees from the television broadcasters, the Eisteddfod gets help from three main sources. These are, donations from private subscribers, a substantial grant from the Arts Council of Wales, and contributions by local authorities. The sponsor of this Bill believes, the Secretary of State for Wales believes, and I believe, that the contribution by local authorities would be much greater in total but for doubts of the powers to contribute of local authorities which are not in the vicinity of Llangollen. They doubt whether they can assist a festival if it is many miles away. Although all Wales is interested in and proud of this Festival, there are doubts whether authorities, for example, in South Wales or West Wales, can legally make a contribution. That is what the Bill is about.
The powers under Section 132 of the Local Government Act, 1948, are limited by a proviso that the place of the entertainment—a term with a very wide meaning—should be convenient for residents in the area of the contributing authority. The Bill will remove that limitation in relation specifically to the Llangollen Musical Eisteddfod and in relation to local authorities in Wales—just as an Act of 1959, similarly introduced by a private Member in another place, did in relation to the older Royal National Eisteddfod of Wales.
This is not the time for me to deal with the details of the Bill, but your 138 Lordships nevertheless will wish me to comment briefly on some words of the Bill which seem to have aroused curiosity in another place. The Bill dispenses not only with the limitation by reference to the convenience of residents in the area of the contributing authority, which is the main purpose of the Bill, but also with the requirement that the contributing authority should have the concurrence of the authority in whose area the entertainment takes place. In the context of what I have said about the Llangollen Eisteddfod that may seem a little strange and a superfluity; but when one is making a new provision by amending existing legislation one has to fit it to the pattern of that legislation, and as I have indicated the term "entertainment" in the 1948 Act has a very wide meaning. For some entertainers it is obviously right that another authority wishing to contribute should get the consent of the authority in whose area it is provided, and which indeed may be providing it. For the Llangollen Eisteddfod this would no doubt be a formality, but it is necessary and useful to enable the contributing authority to dispense with the trouble of the formality. I ask your Lordships to give your warm support to a little Bill with a big purpose, which is to help to sustain a wonderful enterprise in a small corner of Wales of which all Britain can be proud.

§ LORD ABERDARE
My Lords, I am glad to say that I find nothing preposterous about the noble Lord's suggestions, as he found about mine earlier in the day, and I am delighted to support this Bill. I would thank the noble Lord for introducing it with such clarity and with a true ring of Welsh oratory, which makes it a pleasure to listen to him in this House. I must declare an interest, because for many years I have been a vice-president of the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod, and so naturally I am fully in support of the Bill and wish it every success.

§ LORD OGMORE
My Lords, on my own behalf, and on behalf of the Liberal Peers, I would support the noble Lord, Lord Maelor, in asking your Lordships to agree to the Second Reading of this 139 Bill. Like the noble Lord, Lord Aberdare, I, too, must declare an interest, because for many years I, too, have been a vice-president. In fact there are several Members of your Lordships' House who are also vice-presidents; they seem to have combed through the House pretty well. I support the Bill because the International Eisteddfod is one of the most remarkable projects of the post-war era, at a time when everything is becoming so centralised and when nothing can be done without an enormous public relations operation. Here one finds this small town which sets itself out to promote an international festival embracing all kinds of art—not only singing and dancing, but even such subjects as photography have their place in the Festival, and it is remarkable to see these charming young people from many other countries dressed in their colourful costumes.
The Eisteddfod, like most other bodies to-day, has had to contend with rising costs. Not only is the Eisteddfod responsible for putting up the many hundreds of people who come to the Festival from foreign countries, but it also pays their fares from the port at which they land in this country, usually from Dover. As Llangollen has had its railway station and lines removed as a result of Lord Beeching's activities, this again has meant a very much greater expense for the Eisteddfod authorities. I regret to say that there was a danger only a year ago that this Eisteddfod might have had to close down altogether, but there is now the possibility that local authorities from all parts of Wales can contribute to this very worthy endeavour, which I think the House will support. There is no obligation on them to do so; they need not do so unless they want to, but I imagine that most of them will want to do so. I would urge them, and especially my own county, the County of Glamorgan—and my own town of Bridgend, which is perhaps a little wealthier than some other parts of Wales—to contribute fairly handsomely.
I do not think local authorities have bent over backwards to spend the rate which they are entitled to spend on cultural activities. I remember being in the House of Commons when this matter was proposed by the late Mr. Aneurin Bevan, who was very keen on this subject, 140 but I do not think that local authorities in England, Wales, or Scotland for that matter, have really lived up to their responsibilities. Here is a case where the Welsh local authorities could well put their hands in their pockets, or the ratepayers' pockets, and subscribe to this very worthy organisation. I beg to support the Bill.

§ LORD MOYLE
My Lords, as brevity is the order of the evening, I propose to be very brief in supporting this very useful Bill, certainly in so far as the Principality is concerned. First of all, I should like to congratule my honourable friend the Member for Wrexham in introducing the Bill. The most remarkable thing about him is not only his success, but the amazing luck that followed him in being able to introduce this Bill under the Ten-Minute Rule, because, as ex-Members of the House of Commons are fully aware, that is an occasion for a propaganda exercise—not that I am against propaganda, provided that it is properly directed.
Secondly, I should like to congratulate my noble friend Lord Maelor on introducing the Bill in a speech which was worthy of his fellow countrymen. This Bill, if it realises its purpose, will help the International Festival of Llangollen to be maintained and will add a touch of cavalier gaiety to the somewhat puritanical standards of the Royal Welsh National Eisteddfod. As a result, I sincerely hope that this Bill will be successful and will induce local authorities to give the financial aid necessary to maintain this praiseworthy institution.

§ BARONESS PHILLIPS
My Lords, it gives me great pleasure to follow the commendation and the good wishes, and indeed the congratulations, which have been given to my noble friend Lord Maelor. I feel certain that his honourable friend in another place could not have introduced the Bill with greater eloquence. He was indeed correct when he said that it is a little Bill with a big purpose. Music, as we know, is international, as indeed are all the arts, and Her Majesty's Government have given a lead in their support of the arts. So it is following that policy through when I say that I am empowered to wish this Bill a very speedy 141 passage, and I hope that, by removing any fears which local authorities have about their powers to contribute, it will make it possible for them to be sufficiently generous not only to keep the Festival alive but to make it an even more exciting event than it has been in the past. I am delighted that my noble friend has introduced the Bill here this afternoon, and I wish it a very speedy passage.

§ LORD MAELOR
My Lords, I wish to thank noble Lords for the support which they have given me and the Bill this afternoon. I feel grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Aberdare. I paid a tribute to him in a brief intervention this afternoon, and I wish to add to that tribute. Our system of Parliamentary Government provides that there are two sides to both of our Houses, and I am happy that on the other side of this House Wales is represented by a gentleman of the calibre of the noble Lord, Lord Aberdare. He and his family are highly regarded in the region associated with his title. The noble Lord, Lord Ogmore, is from South Wales, and I was very pleased to have his support from the Liberal Benches. Indeed, he seems to support me in everything I do in the House.

§ LORD OGMORE
My Lords, may I ask whether, in return, the noble Lord will support me in my endeavours to retain the Welsh Brigade of Infantry in the Army?

§ LORD MAELOR
My Lords, as I said, the noble Lord seems to support me in everything I do, and I should not be surprised if one day he is sitting by my side. What he said about the fares paid by the Committee is true, and this is quite naturally a strain on their financial resources. They have to pay to assist the choirs to come from all parts of the world, and the fares have to be paid from the port of landing here in Britain to Llangollen.
Representatives from the three parts of Wales—South Wales, Mid-Wales and North Wales—have spoken here to-day. My noble friend Lord Moyle comes from mid-Wales. He, again, is an English-speaking Welshman but, for all that, is none the less a good Welshman. I said previously that the Eisteddfod will be held next week. May I invite noble Lords to come to the Festival to see it for themselves? 142 I shall be presiding there on the Friday, and the Prime Minister will be there on the Saturday. So your Lordships have your choice.