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Sierra Leone: UN Sanctions
Baroness Whitaker asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What changes there have been in United Nations sanctions in relation to Sierra Leone. [HL2903]
Baroness Amos: UN Security Council Resolution 1385 (2001) was adopted on 19 December 2001.
The resolution extends for a further 11 months the mandatory UN embargo on the export of rough diamonds from Sierra Leone originally imposed for a period of 18 months by UNSCR 1306 (2000) of 5 July 2000.
Diamonds certified under the Government of Sierra Leone certification scheme continue to remain exempt from the embargo.
The UK originally played a leading role in promoting UNSCR 1306 in the UN Security Council. It continues to support measures aimed at breaking the link between conflict and the illicit trade in rough diamonds.
The embargo is implemented in the UK and the Isle of Man by means of an amendment to the open general licence, effected on 17 July 2000, and in the Channel Islands and Overseas Territories by Orders in Council under the United Nations Act 1946 (S.I. Nos 1822/2000 and 1840/2000).
Antiquities of National Importance
Lord Renfrew of Kaimsthorn asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether the items of Bronze Age treasure referred to in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport News Release 7/02 of 22 January will now be referred to a coroner's inquest in pursuance of the legislation pertaining to treasure trove in force at the time of their alleged first sale and as subsequently amended; whether the presence now of these items on the market could properly be construed as lawful if their original discovery has been concealed contrary to law; and whether the Minister upon the
- expiry of the announced temporary bar on the export of these items will refuse an export licence in pursuance of Article 2 of the EC Regulation (3911/92) on the Export of Cultural Goods; and [HL2821]
Whether they would recommend the application of public funds to secure for the nation national treasures where the finder of the antiquities in question has apparently failed to report their discovery to a coroner; and whether turning a blind eye to such an apparent breach of the law risks setting a precedent for the future restriction of the illicit traffic in antiquities. [HL2822]
The Minister of State, Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Baroness Blackstone): The first public appearance of these items predates the Treasure Act 1996. They, therefore, would have come under the earlier common law of treasure trove, which required proof that items had been deliberately buried with the intention of recovery. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has investigated the provenance of these items and, as there is no evidence of the original date or place of finding, is advised that it would not be possible to demonstrate that the items might be treasure trove; nor is there any evidence that the original discovery of the items was concealed.
The temporary bar on export provides an opportunity for interest to be expressed in acquiring items of national importance so that they may be retained within the UK. As with every case, if, by the end of the initial deferral period (22 February 2002) an expression of interest has been received, the Minister can take this into account when deciding whether or not to extend the deferral period for a further month.
Acquisitions are the responsibility of the governing bodies of national institutions and are considered in line with the policies of that institution. It is possible that an institution may on occasion decide to act as a repository of last resort for an item which lacks a full documented provenance.
Free Television Licences
Baroness Anelay of St Johns asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What is the annual sum now paid by them to the BBC in lieu of the free television licences that can be claimed by those households in which a person over the age of 75 holds a television licence. [HL2836]
Baroness Blackstone: The amount paid to the BBC in respect of free television licences issued to people aged 75 or over in the financial year 2000–01 was £306 million. The forecast for the current financial year is £354 million.
BBC's Digital Channels for Children
Baroness Anelay of St Johns asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether the BBC is in breach of the terms of its agreement with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport over the upper limit imposed on the output of imported cartoons broadcast on the two new digital channels for children (that is, CBBC and Cbeebies); and, if so, what action they have taken. [HL2837]
Baroness Blackstone: The Secretary of State's approval for the BBC's new digital children's channels included conditions that around 90 per cent of Cbeebies' output and around 75 per cent of CBBC's output would be made in the European Union/European Economic Area. The BBC has assured me that it is fully meeting both these conditions.
Export of Cultural Goods
Lord Renfrew of Kaimsthorn asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art has since 1992 updated its terms of reference and notes of guidance in order to take account of the EC Regulation (3911/92) on the Export of Cultural Goods, whereby an export licence sought for cultural goods originating in a member state may be refused when the presence on the market of the goods in question is not lawful; and [HL2823]
On how many occasions since 1992 they have placed a temporary bar upon the export of cultural goods under the application of the Waverley criteria; and on how many occasions since 1992 they have refused an export licence for cultural goods under the application of the EC Regulation (3911/92) on the Export of Cultural Goods; and [HL2824]
Whether they have appropriate procedures to check and restrict the export of illicit cultural goods, as provided for under EC Regulation (3911/92) on the Export of Cultural Goods. [HL2825]
Baroness Blackstone: The terms of reference of the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art have remained the same since its establishment in 1952. They will be considered as part of the current quinquennial review of the reviewing committee. The
procedures and guidance for exporters of works of art, taking into account the EC Regulation (3911/92) on the Export of Cultural Goods, is issued by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and was last updated in 1997.For the reporting years 1992–2001, the Secretary of State, following the committee's advice, placed a temporary bar on the export of 187 items, and refused a licence on nine occasions, during the same period, because the owner of the item concerned would not accept a matching offer at the recommended fair market price.
Where an object has come into the UK from another EU member state on or after 1 January 1993, either directly or via a non-EU country, applicants requiring an EC licence to export from the UK are required to include with their application evidence that the object was legally despatched from the originating member state. No licence is issued until satisfactory information has been provided by applicants. Three EC licences have been refused as a result of illegal removal from another member state.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What is the sterling threshold for the requirements for export licences for cultural goods; what representations have been made in the past year by either Ministers or officials of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to the European Commission to raise the threshold; and when was the last occasion upon which the threshold was raised. [HL2874]
Baroness Blackstone: The attached table sets out the thresholds above which an individual export licence is required for the export of cultural goods both under the UK or the EC licencing system. The thresholds for EC licences are those established under EC Regulation 3911/92, on the export of cultural goods, introduced into UK law on 1 April 1993. The UK licence thresholds were last revised at the same time in order to rationalise the UK limits, so far as possible, with those contained in the regulation.
DCMS officials and I use every available opportunity to press for the limits to be updated at least in line with inflation, as provided in the EC Regulation 3911/92. We have also welcomed the Commission's new initiatives to contribute to the effective functioning of the mechanisms set up by the regulation, including making the maximum use of new technologies to improve its implementation.
| Category of object | UK Licence* | EC Licence* |
| 1. Any cultural object not listed below which is more than 50 years old | £39,600 | £39,600 |
| 2. Manuscripts and documents (not being printed matter), including maps and musical scores, singly or in collections, which are more than 50 years old | Zero | Zero |
| 3. Archives, and any elements thereof, of any kind, on any medium which are more than 50 years old | Zero | Zero |
| 4. Architectural, scientific and engineering drawings produced by hand, more than 50 years old | Zero | £11,900 |
| 5. Archaeological material or any object more than 50 years old found in UK soil or its terroritorial waters, other than any object buried or concealed for less than 50 years | Zero | Zero |
| 6. Archaeological material or any object more than 50 years old found in soil or waters outside the UK and its territorial waters which is: (i) 50–100 years old (ii) more than 100 years old | £39,600 £39,600 | No EC licence required Zero |
| 7. Elements forming an integral part of artistic, historical or religious monuments, which have been dismembered, and which are: (i) 50–100 years old (ii) more than 100 years old | £39,600 £39,600 | No EC licence required Zero |
| 8. Incunabula more than 50 years old | £39,600 | Zero |
| 9. Textiles more than 50 years old (excluding carpets and tapestries in category 30) | £6,000 | £39,600 |
| 10. Photographs, films and negatives thereof, which are more than 50 years old | £6,000 | £11,900 |
| 11. Portraits or likenesses of British historic persons (made otherwise than by photography and excluding a coin) which are more than 50 years old | £6,000 | £119,000 |
| 12. Mosaics (other than those falling in the categories 5, 6 and 7), which are more than 50 years old | £39,600 | £11,900 |
| 13. Drawings executed entirely by hand on any medium and in any material, more than 50 years old | £39,600 | £11,900 |
| 14. Original engravings, prints, serigraphs, and lithographs and their respective plates, and original posters, more than 50 years old | £39,600 | £11,900 |
| 15. Printed maps which are: (i) 50–200 years old (ii) more than 200 years old | £39,600 £39,600 | No EC licence required £11,900 |
| 16. Firearms which are: (i) 50–100 years old (ii) more than 100 years old | £39,600 £20,000 | £39,600 £39,600 |
| 17. Arms and armour more than 50 years old | £20,000 | £39,600 |
| 18. Optical, photographic or cinematographic apparatus more than 50 years old | £39,600 | £39,600 |
| 19. Original sculptures or statuary, and copies produced by the same process as the original, which are more than 50 years old, other than those in categories 5 and 6 | £39,600 | £39,600 |
| 20. Books which are: (i) 50–100 years old (ii) more than 100 years old (iii) a collection more than 100 years old | £39,600 £39,600 | No EC licence required £39,600 £39,600 |
| 21. Means of transport which are: (i) 50–75 years old (ii) more than 75 years old | £39,600 £39,600 | No EC licence required £39,600 |
| 22. Toys more than 50 years old | £39,600 | £39,600 |
| 23. Pottery, glassware, silver, metalwork and jewellery more than 50 years old | £39,600 | £39,600 |
| 24. Furniture and woodwork more than 50 years old | £39,600 | £39,600 |
| 25. Musical instruments more than 50 years old | £39,600 | £39,600 |
| 26. Clocks and watches and parts thereof, more than 50 years old | £39,600 | £39,600 |
| 27. Wallpaper more than 50 years old | £39,600 | £39,600 |
| 28. Scientific and mechanical material more than 50 years old | £39,600 | £39,600 |
| 29. Carpets and tapestries more than 50 years old | £39,600 | £39,600 |
| 30. Paintings in water-colour, gouache or pastel, which are more than 50 years old, other than portraits of British historic persons in category 11 | £39,600 | £23,800 |
| 31. Paintings in oil or tempera, which are more than 50 years old, other than portraits of British historic persons in category 11 | £119,000 | £119,000 |
| 32. Collections of and specimens from zoological, botanical, mineralogical or anatomical collections more than 50 years old | No UK licence required | £39,600 |
| 33. Collections of historical, palaeontological, ethnographic or numismatic interest (other than objects in categories 5 and 6) more than 50 years old | No UK licence required | £39,600 |
* A UK licence is required for the export of cultural goods to an EU member state. Most cultural goods exported to a non-EU destination require an EC licence but in those cases where the UK value is lower than the EU threshold, a UK licence is required.
The UK threshold values were last reviewed and raised in 1993, in order to rationalise the UK and EC limits so far as possible.
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