Let cathedrals open to stave off financial crisis, MP urges
A YORKSHIRE MP has urged the Government to allow cathedrals to reopen to prevent an escalating financial crisis amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Julian Sturdy, the Conservative MP for the York Outer constituency, has written to Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick, urging him to relax restrictions on the nation’s largest places of worship which have been forced to remain closed since March.
Senior clergy at York Minster announced on Wednesday they faced a £5.2m shortfall in the cathedral’s budget this year due to the Covid-19 restrictions.
The minster has been shut to worshippers and paying visitors and will only be able to reopen at the start of July, according to the Government’s current timetable.
The loss of revenue has forced the Dean and Chapter of York to take the “terribly sad” decision to close the Minster School, which was founded to educate the cathedral’s choristers and dates back to 627.
Mr Sturdy said: “The closure of the historic Minster School is sad
news for York and comes at a time when many of our visitor attractions are facing severe shortfalls in their budget.
“We cannot allow the economic
cost of the lockdown to do longterm damage to the heritage and culture of our city.
“York Minister is famed for its cavernous interior and lends itself to remaining open for visitors in an age of social distancing.
“I have therefore called upon the Government to make an exception for cathedrals and larger places of worship and allow them to reopen as soon as possible so they can benefit from muchneeded public donations and visitor income.”
Meanwhile, an independent school chief has warned more private schools could be forced to close permanently.
Christopher King, the chief executive of the Independent Association of Prep Schools, said feepaying schools that were already struggling may be “tipped over the financial edge”.
Boris Johnson’s former prep school, Ashdown House in East Sussex, has announced it will shut at the end of the summer term due to financial challenges posed by coronavirus.
The chief executive of the prep schools association, which has more than 600 members in the UK, said private schools may close for good in the next academic year if they faced challenges recruiting pupils in the autumn.
Mr King added there was also concern among boarding schools about whether the number of international families choosing to study in the UK would drop.
About 10 private schools have announced closures in the past few months while others have begun discussing mergers, according to the Independent Schools Council.
We cannot allow the cost of the lockdown to do long-term damage.
Julian Sturdy, the Conservative MP for the York Outer constituency.