French heritage chief: Let’s copy British system of funding historical sites

Charging entry fees at cathedrals among ideas to raise cash for desperately needed maintenance work

FRANCE should emulate Britain and charge for entry to its cathedrals and major churches, according to a newly appointed heritage supremo.

Stéphane Bern, 53, a television presenter who specialises in heritage and royalty, was recently tasked by Emmanuel Macron, the French president, to find funds to prevent cultural and historical sites from falling into disrepair.

He said that French cities no longer had the means to maintain their religious heritage and called on the government to allow sites such as Notre Dame or the Sacre Coeur to charge.

“We urgently need to introduce an entrance fee for cathedrals. We’re the only country where it’s free,” he told Le Parisien newspaper. “In London, the entrance fee for Westminster Abbey is €24.” The entrance fee is actually £20 online and £22 on the door. St Paul’s Cathedral costs £18 for visitors, while Durham Cathedral has an entrance charge of £7.50 and York charges £15 to the Minster and Tower.

However, the suggestion sparked angry reactions from some quarters.

Nathalie Goutlet, a French senator, tweeted to remind Mr Bern that “to make people pay to enter cathedrals is a violation of the 1905 law (separating Church from state) and a violation of equality before the law”.

Eric Ciotti, a Right-wing opposition MP, wrote: “Our cathedrals are sacred places, open to all and guardians of our identity. They must thus escape the commercialisation of our society.”

Even one high-profile priest disagreed. Pierre-hervé Grosjean said: “On the contrary, more than ever we need places of silence, beauty, free of charge, open to all.”

Mr Bern said that his idea was only a suggestion already mooted by the religious heritage watchdog, an independent group, to target tourists in popular landmarks.

Mr Bern also praised Britain’s National Lottery, saying a regular draw could help fund maintenance by bringing in €20-30million a year.

He said la Française des Jeux, the French equivalent, was “very enthusiastic” about the idea of “giving more meaning to scratch cards”.

Another British idea worth copying, he said, was English Heritage, with its four million subscribers. “The money goes toward maintaining and restoring all the monuments managed by English Heritage. In return, members have a card to visit landmarks and to access once per month an event in one of the sites,” he said.

The amount spent by the French state on historic sites, with many falling into ruin, has fallen by 40 per cent since 2010 to €400million (£365m) a year. Private donations have fallen by 50 per cent in 10 years to €250 million.

Notre-dame needs a renovation estimated at €150million and the government has contributed barely €2 million.