Research reveals impact of the Bard
RESEARCH conducted at the University of Glasgow has revealed that Scotland’s national bard is worth £203million a year to the Scottish economy.
The “worldwide fascination” with Robert Burns is proving to support Scottish businesses and jobs, with the poet’s brand net worth of £139.5m a year.
The year-long study launched by the Scottish Government considered how investments in the country that recognise the poet, such as the opening of the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, have helped increase this value.
Professor Pittock, of the Centre for Robert Burns Studies at Glasgow University’s College of Arts, said: “More than 250 years after his birth, Robert Burns, his life and work, still holds a huge fascination for a worldwide audience.
“Burns has universal appeal with his work being translated into every single major language including Russian, German, French and Chinese. While Auld Lang Syne is our New Year anthem and has been performed by everyone from Elvis Presley to Jimi Hendrix.”
The research showed that Burns-related tourism brought in the highest revenue at just under £155m per year, where the annual Burns night turns over £11m in Scotland.
Burns Festivals throughout the country brought in £7m and related food and drink is estimated to be £20m a year.
University research and education on Burns estimated to bring £500,000 a year.
MORE than 100 charities have lost out on crucial funding under a new scheme by Glasgow City Council, prompting claims dozens are at risk of closure due to an “unfair and unacceptable” process.
A quarter of all applications to the Glasgow Communities Fund have been rejected due to minor administrative errors, leading to MSPs including Nicola Sturgeon, Humza Yousaf and Ivan McKee adding their names to a letter expressing concerns about the new scheme.
The Glasgow Times is aware of two long-running charities facing closure due to the problems – Action on Asbestos and Kids and Adults Together in Sighthill (KATS) – but “dozens” of others are also said to be at risk.
Glasgow City Council claims they have been providing organisations with information about the new fund since 2017, including “the importance of submitting all required documentation”.
However, the letter, headed up by Maryhill and Springburn MSP Bob Doris, states: “Whilst we appreciate that the City Council has taken this decision ‘in fairness to all applicants to the Fund’ and that therefore they ‘are unable to accept any missing documents after the closing date’; we would strongly urge the City Council to reconsider.
“We believe that organisations should be given the opportunity to provide any missing information over the next few weeks. This would allow those organisations who provide the required information during that time to be considered alongside other applications.
“We agree that fairness must be at the heart of this process. However that fairness must be to the communities and individuals that each organisation serves. To exclude an organisation for an administrative oversight without giving them the opportunity to address the issue, actually penalises the often vulnerable people who rely on the service and support offered by applicant organisations. That is both unfair and unacceptable.”
Speaking to our sister title The Herald, Mr Doris said that the council’s decision was “causing a lot of pain and anxiety” and he hoped common sense would prevail.
He added that the letter had been sent to the council’s chief executive, as well as leader Susan Aitken “because there could be a political decision to be made here to address this, rather than just an administrative one”.
The Communities Fund has in part been introduced to replace the Integrated Grant Fund (IGF) which comes to an end in March.
A total of 500 groups applied for funding from the new scheme, of which 125 were rejected because one or more of the six documents required had not been attached.
Tina Suffredini, director of KATS pre-school nursery and after-school