02/11/2001

The Italian Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Vittorio Sgarbi, said on the 26th of October that there will now be free access to state museums for 4 hours per day. This statement comes in the light of the Berlusconi government wishing to hand the management of Italian art centres to private companies, with plans to have museum ticket sales and restaurants handled by the private sector. However Italy's political left-wing will oppose such legislation when it comes before parliament as part of next year's finance bill and have asked for further clarification of these plans. 37 leading museum directors from around the world are also disturbed by this venture. A joint letter signed by the heads of the Metropolitan Museum and the Guggenheim in New York, the Louvre, Paris and the National Gallery, London has been sent to the Italian government, appealing for wider consultation before putting the running of the museums into private hands. (Andrew Moore)