Bletchley park denied government funding

 

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Posted on 22 May 2009 at 14:55

The House of Lords has rejected an appeal by Baroness McIntosh to provide Bletchley Park, the centre that helped crack the German Enigma code during World War 2, with government funding.

Baroness McIntosh's petition, which asked Her Majesty's Government "what support they will give to the restoration and development of Bletchley Park" was rejected by Lord Davies of Oldham, the deputy chief whip of the House of Lords.

"Both English Heritage and the Housing Communities Agency have provided advice and funding for the development of the Bletchley Park site. In 2008 English Heritage provided a grant of £330,000 towards buildings conservation repairs and has offered to provide a further £300,000 for the area," said Lord Davies.

While this investment has been crucial to Bletchley Park's survival, the lack of additional government funding is detrimental to the site's long-term survival.

"The Bletchley Park Trust has indeed received significant investment into the infrastructure of the site for the enormous backlog of critical repairs and for this we are grateful to both English Heritage and Milton Keynes Council. These repairs are already well underway," said Simon Greenish, CEO of the Bletchley Park Trust. "However, until these building works are completed over the next three years, it is the day-to-day operational costs associated with running this ageing and dilapidated site that the Trust battles to meet. The Trust is currently working on a major bid for Heritage Lottery Funding and we are hopeful for the success of this bid in order to develop the site into the world-class education and heritage centre it deserves to be."

Lord Davies also rejected the suggestion that Bletchley Park should be associated with the Imperial War Museum, despite the fact that the work that went on there helped shorten the war by up to two years, saving countless lives.

"The Trust's business plan is a solid one and establishes that once capital building works are complete and the museum has been developed, bringing in substantially more visitors, Bletchley Park will be self-supporting. Given the significant impact of Bletchley Park's wartime work on the outcome of World War Two and the way we all live today, I am disappointed at the negative Government response to Baroness McIntosh's appeal," said Greenish.

Author: David Ludlow