§ 64. Mr. ChapmanTo ask the Minister for the Arts if he will make a statement on the number, type and geographical spread of museums and Government financial support for them.
70W
§ Mr. LuceThe report on the museums database project indicates that in 1985 there were 2,131 museums and galleries in the United Kingdom. Of these, 7 per cent. were directly funded by central Government, 41 per cent. were local authority museums, and the remaining 52 per cent. were operated by companies, charitable institutions, voluntary associations, private individuals, nationalised industries, educational institutions or other bodies.
The geographical spread was as follows:
Per cent. Yorks/Humberside 3.2 South West 11.2 South East 47.4 Wales 7.8 East Midlands 2.6 North 4.3 North West 6.0 Scotland 7.8 West Midlands 2.6 Northern Ireland 6.0 Central Government expenditure on museums and galleries (including support for non-national institutions) borne on the votes of the Office of Arts and Libraries was £95.5 million in 1985–86 and is expected to be some £153.6 million this year.