The Scottish Government has baulked at the £5m price tag for a new museum of slavery, describing the cost as "currently unachievable".
Instead, they will commit to just £200,000 to “begin work addressing the recommendations" made in a 2022 report by the Empire, Slavery and Scotland's Museums Steering Group, set up by ministers at the height of the Black Lives Matter movement.
SNP Culture Minister Christina McKelvie blamed "budgetary pressures” for not being able to set up a “dedicated space” to “tell the story of Scotland’s role in imperial trade, colonial conquest and historic slavery".
However, she insisted the Scottish Government was committed to adopting the six recommendations made by the group, including supporting museums to return “looted or unethically acquired items” to the communities they were taken from.
Though in the government’s formal response to the steering group’s report, they say “given the current challenging public finance context, it is not currently possible to establish a dedicated funding stream to support repatriation".
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The other proposals now adopted by the government include “museums ensuring anti-racism is embedded in their workplaces and public spaces”, and involving “the people of Scotland in shaping their work through co-production, to promote cultural democracy and participation for all".
Museums will also be expected to commit to “research, interpret, and share the histories of Scotland’s links to empire, colonialism, and historic slavery” and “support efforts to promote and embed race equality and anti-racism in the curricula in a meaningful, effective, and sustainable way".
Ms McKelvie said: “I am pleased to confirm the Scottish Government fully accepts all six recommendations, including the creation of a dedicated space to address Scotland’s role in empire, colonialism and historic slavery.
“While budgetary pressures mean we are not currently able to commit to the group’s suggestion of £5 million for this work, the Scottish Government has provided funding of £200,000 in 2023/24 to enable the steering group and Museums Galleries Scotland to begin work addressing the recommendations, including scoping out the format of a new organisation to progress the creation of a dedicated space and national guidance around the repatriation of objects from Scottish institutions.”
The minister said the government wanted “everyone to feel safe, welcome, and represented in our cultural spaces".
READ MORE: National Museum and Scottish Government in row over Nisga’a pole cost
Last year, The Herald revealed that the National Museum of Scotland nearly had to call off the high-profile repatriation of a stolen totem pole to Canada after the Scottish Government reneged on a promise to cover costs.
There was initially a “political willingness” from ministers to pay for the return of the Ni'isjoohl Memorial Pole to the Nisga'a Nation.
However, government officials flinched when they learned they would need to stump up £710,000. They suggested the museum should try crowdfunding instead, before eventually backing down.
Jatin Haria, elected Chair of the Steering Group and Executive Director at the Coalition for Racial Equality and Rights said they understood that finances were tight but warned the government more money would be needed.
“The money that the Scottish Government has committed will be useful to kick start a long term process that will finally allow Scotland to properly tell its story of involvement in empire, slavery and colonialism in a coherent way.
“We can't expect to resolve the racial inequalities that persist today without a better understanding of the history which brought us to this point."
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