National heritage: why our past is also our future – The Yorkshire Post says

The then PM had also become aware on his global travels that overseas countries did more to support and safeguard their heritage – this at a time when there were even plans to demolish Bletchley Park’s wartime codebreaking huts.

Unthinkable now on the exact 80th anniversary of the Dunkirk evacuation, and 75 years after the celebration of VE Day, it was Bletchley Park where the Enigma code was cracked that changed the course of history. And while this Whitehall ministry has had many subsequent remits and is now the convoluted Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, it can’t afford to lose sight of its original purpose.

It is, after all, Britain’s history which makes this country so alluring to international visitors – cities like York, its Minster standing tall as a beacon of hope, do still resonate around the world.

Yet, without income from visitors as a consequence of the lockdown, the Church of England – as well as organisations like National Trust, English Heritage and many more – will struggle to pay for urgent repairs in order to preserve the fabric of landmark buildings.

As such, it’s imperative that funds become available for essential work – and that this is not neglected by the rival bureaucracies at the DCMS, VisitBritain and separate tourism bodies for each of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Every pound spent directly on heritage should be viewed as an investment in the UK’s economic recovery.

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James Mitchinson