Mr. R. C. Mitchellasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he will make a statement about changes in the grant arrangements for national museums and galleries.
§ Mr. Hugh JenkinsI am pleased to be able to report that new grant arrangements have been agreed with the Trustees of the British Museum, the Imperial War Museum, the National Gallery, the National Maritime Museum and the Tate Gallery which will give the trustees greater freedom and responsibility for managing their institutions.
The trustees are now accountable for an inclusive net subhead covering all their expenditure and receipts, in addition to the purchase grant in aid which will continue to be separate. This will give trustees greater freedom to allocate expenditure as they see fit, and to apply to the needs of the institutions without formality receipts obtained in excess of the Vote provision. The net subhead includes provision for items previously made available by HMSO on an allied service basis and provision in respect of certain goods and services provided by the Supplies Division of the Property Services Agency the cost of which was previously born on the Vote for the Department of the Environment. My consideration of the annual estimates of these institutions will, therefore, in future be concerned more with policy and long-term objectives and less with detailed items of expenditure.
The staff of the five museums and galleries will continue to be subject to salary scales and conditions of service analogous to those of civil servants. Trustees will be free, within their financial resources, to create new posts up to keeper and equivalent levels subject to an agreed ratio of senior to junior posts. Any staff additions arising from substantial organisational changes, the assumption of new responsibilities or the introduction of classes or grades not already included in a particular institution's complement and any additional posts above senior executive officer in the Administration Category will be subject to approval by my Department. There will be periodic inspection of posts to ensure common standards of grading and workloads.
115WThe staff associations have been consulted and have accepted these changes. I shall keep the operation of the new arrangements under review.